Anna B Savage - Daudi Matsiko

"English singer-songwriter mines complicated feelings with dark humor and an unforgettable voice"

A sense of rootedness is at the heart of Anna B Savage’s third record You and i are Earth, a record that is as much about healing as it is an unbowed sense of curiosity, and, more simply, “a love letter to a man and to Ireland.” Following on from her critically acclaimed records A Common Turn and in|FLUX, You and i are Earth manages to convey a sense of intimacy, while also being open-ended. Sounds of the sea and bright-eyed strings coax us on opening song Talk to Me, a study in tenderness, which brings us to a place of the elemental. It is a charged signifier that sets the tone, “I don’t think I feel nervous because of the intimacy of it,” says Savage, “the thing I feel nervous about is that it is so delicate and subtle, and the attention economy has made us desire big shiny things that will whisk us away.”

Yet You and i are Earth transports differently, swept along by an abiding sense of calm, a major progression from Savage’s earlier work, “when I was writing the first record, it felt difficult. I wanted to make sense of something I didn’t really understand. Then with the second record I had done some therapy, and was getting to grips with myself, but my old self was still pulling me back a bit, but with this one it was quite different”. Gentleness is as radiant a touchstone on the record as earthiness, something that Savage attributes to the place she finds herself at present, both geographically and emotionally. And quite literally the record bears witness to a particular piece of earth - Ireland, and Savage’s relationship to it as her new home.

Daudi Matsiko

Based in Nottingham, British-Ugandan artist Daudi Matsiko carefully crafts modern yet reverent folk. His fragile yet powerful voice, evocative lyrics and modern folk melodies earned him a standing ovation at the Great Escape festival in 2023, as well as praise from radio personalities such as Gilles Peterson, Lauren Laverne, Jamz Supernova and Dean Jackson.

The singer-songwriter’s debut album, ‘The King of Misery’, is a hauntingly beautiful exploration of depression, bipolar disorder and the search for hope in the experience. Since its release, the album has received 4 stars in Mojo Magazine and Far Out Magazine, headlined Bandcamp Weekly and continues to captivate audiences worldwide. With life-affirming and memorable performances, Matsiko is an artist not to be missed.