EP · 2011

Nine Time Zones Away

Five piano-and-voice settings of kitchens, letters and weather, written in a rented Edinburgh flat.

Tracks

1. Nine Time Zones AwayThe very first song I wrote after leaving the chorus. Two kitchens, one clock, and a distance I could only measure in tea.piano ballad, chamber song3:43
2. The Weather in Your HandwritingI loved the idea of a letter that arrives half-dissolved. The chorus lifts a step higher than you expect, and that became a habit.crossover, piano pop3:46
3. Clutch and CourageA bright little song about my first driving lesson. I was far more frightened than the lyric admits.whimsical pop, chamber pop3:08
4. Before I Open the DoorEverything happens in the second before a door opens. I wanted the piano to hold its breath with her.art song, minimalist piano4:07
5. Shutters Drawn at NoonWritten in the one heatwave Edinburgh ever gave me. Slow, shuttered, and a little drowsy, like the afternoon.impressionist, piano ballad3:42

Liner notes

I left the opera chorus with a suitcase and a borrowed upright, and these five songs were the first things I wrote that felt like mine. They are small on purpose: a kettle, a handwriting, a hallway. I recorded them in two evenings with the window open to the rain, and you can hear the street if you listen closely.

Seraphina Aldous