A clear and confident debut that explores the ups and downs of moving through early adulthood.
With a title like “As The Chaos Unfolds”, you would expect Scottish singer-songwriter Rhona Macfarlane’s debut album to be written about something fairly seismic, and that it is: coming of age in your 20s. It’s one of the most turbulent periods of life one can go through, and Mcfarlane certainly ran the gamut dealing with love, mental health, and her own identity – all of which are themes covered here with the deftness of a seasoned pro, no doubt, at least in part, helped by Mcfarlane’s co-producer Matt Ingram, who in the past has worked with the likes of Laura Marling and Lianne La Havas.
The airy and acoustic ‘Return to the East’ finds Macfarlane taking a trip back to her hometown and reconnecting with the girl she was (“Let these wild winds awake who I used to be / A girl as sure as the sea”) and, in turn, helping her to find the authenticity in the person she has now become (“Cause when I return to the East / Gives me strength to believe / That something good is round the bend / Now let it be known to the world / That I know who I am”). The simple ‘July Rain’ takes pleasure in the small things, like the titular summer showers, and Macfarlane’s smoky, smooth vocals have an instantly soothing effect.
While outwardly sunny sounding, ‘Outside Looking In’ delves into feelings of being an outsider via the lens of meeting friends in a New York bar and the discomfort of being instantly othered: “All huddled together and with one glance of your eye / I know just where I stand.” ‘See You Grow’ is a sweet ode of love to an older sibling in which Macfarlane finds joy in watching them grow as a person, realising that they “were never [hers] to mould” anyway.
With its lush piano and vocals, ‘Let the River Flow’ is a real standout. It finds Macfarlane struggling at a self-confessed “crossroads” in a relationship and wondering if it can survive, before realising that no amount of talking can help and the best thing that can be done is to let the partnership take its natural slow, winding course like the proverbial river and see where it might end up. ‘The Tide’ continues the water metaphors, this time representing the way people can’t be held onto, “Sometimes they arrive and then / The next you know they’re gone”, as with the tide itself. On ‘These Days’, Macfarlane’s voice wavers a little as she sings delicately of her pain upon feeling like she’s losing someone she loves to their own demons.
“Been a while since I last saw your face / You left without a word, without a trace / Heavier the silence falls / As I wait to hear your call,” Macfarlane sings heart-achingly on ‘Where Do You Go?’ as she struggles with feelings of helplessness as someone close to her suffers with their mental health, but on ‘Heal Yourself’, a sense of hope emerges: “So come bring your open wounds / And you’ll ascend from sullen grounds below / Sing your song and then they will know / My brave sweet lark, then you can let it go.”
“But we all move through the changes / We all move as the chaos unfolds / We all move through the changes / Keep on moving as the chaos unfolds,” Macfarlane reminds us reassuringly on the album’s swelling, soaring title track. Whether you’re suffering through the upheaval of your 20s, or simply trying to survive in an ever-changing, tumultuous world, it’s always comforting to feel like you’ve got someone going through it with you, and with her debut album, Macfarlane offers the kind of solace that’s a balm for a weary soul.
