Daughter

$presenter.firstNameGroupName Daughter

Chances are if you have a read anything about the music of Daughter, the word “sad” has made an appearance somewhere in the analysis. While describing the band’s music this way is not necessarily inaccurate, it is limiting. “Sad is such a basic word. It encompasses so many things… It doesn’t define everything you can do with that feeling,” said guitarist Igor Haefeli in an interview with The Line of Best Fit.

The UK-based trio—comprised of Haefeli, lead vocalist and lyricist Elena Tonra, and drummer Remi Aguilella—is trying to uncover all that can be done with the feeling “sad.” In the hands of Daughter, sad is not merely a temporary feeling, but rather a condition that affects everything. Their songs tap into the universal feeling of brokenness, serving as laments for a hurting world. These are not songs that are going to pretend that things are all right, when in fact they are not.

On 2013’s breakthrough If You Leave, Elena Tonra made heavy use of metaphors involving the natural world, painting dread and despair as inevitable forces. On the follow-up album, January’s To Not Disappear, Elena narrates from a voice that is no less melancholy, but has more agency in what happens to create this melancholy. Even the difference between the titles of the album suggests a change in attitude, with the action the being taken from the “you” in If You Leave and given to Tonra who refuses to fade away in To Not Disappear. The song “How” displays this agency when it says,

Holding on, souvenirs
His word inked from birthdays
Goodbye to our empty ruins
Yeah that’s when I saw her
Hold me back
All I am

The tone of the music is angrier than on If You Leave, featuring a heavier, rock edge. Still present are the Jeff Buckley inspired clean tone guitars and post-rock builds found on their debut, but this time around Daughter displays the ability to bring a driving, fast-paced spirit to their songs. The song “No Care” is Daughter at their grittiest, as Tonra expresses a sort of punk-rock apathy in her words,

No one asks me for dance
Because I only know how to flail
I always hit like I’m drowning
Dead arms around him
I’d rather hold tightly to the walls
I don’t care

To Not Disappear is another gripping collection of songs that express nothing in the way of happiness, but are not depressing for depressing’s sake. Daughter explores “sad” to its fullest form, expressing brokenness both lyrically and sonically in a way that few people can. It is in the darkness that Daughter finds listeners, and while the band may not offer answers, there is solace in not being alone in the search.

Jordan Petersen

Presentations at Calvin University

Daughter
Wednesday, March 9, 2016 08:30:00 PM
Covenant Fine Arts Center Auditorium

SAO Concert: All Sons & Daughters
Friday, October 11, 2013 08:00:00 PM
Covenant Fine Arts Auditorium (100)

SAO Concert: All Sons & Daughters
Friday, October 11, 2013 08:00:00 PM
Covenant Fine Arts Auditorium (100)

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