Bleep

Maxine Funke’s sonic spells sung in quietude have caught the ears of many a discerning folk enthusiast; with her delicate yet firm command over frolicking guitars and poetic lyrics, it’s hard not to be captivated by her music. After being picked up by Disciples in 2022 for her Pieces Of Driftwood compilation, Funke sets off with her fifth album River Said, weaving through the lilting folk tunes we’ve come to know her for as well as more experimental illustrations that hint at new directions.

Like the opposing banks of a gentle stream, River Said plays out across two halves. On the first side we have Funke’s staple offerings. Bewitching notes open ‘Willow White’, her hushed storytelling vividly depicting natural scenes framed by distant birdsong, while on ‘Cherry Blossom Gin’ and ‘River Said’, she works sweet dissonance into intimate love songs and explorations of modern life, where close, idyllic notes flow like water. Dense clusters of notes paint intersecting passages of anxiety and calm on ‘Call On You’, as she sings “We pretend like we’re not brand new” in front of subtly effecting backing vocals.

The album’s second half is a duo of longform coastal soundscapes, meandering away from pop structures into melodious abstractions. Seashells and glass bottles clink on ‘Long Beach’, synths are warm sunrays beating down on the skin, and cello sighs of heat haze and lazy sunbathing. ‘Oblivion’ creaks with rusty rotations of cello notes, sonorous and waltzing with delay. “Rolling susurration”, Funke calls it, descending the depths into submerged song as her soft vocals and fading rhodes come in.

Peaceful and picturesque as ever, River Said finds Maxine Funke treading new waters with her elegantly candid folk songs.