I’ve been listening to Emily Barker for a long time, since 2011’s Almanac. Listening as her releases came out over the years, I never thought I might one day be working with this amazing songwriter on my own music.
‘The Quiet Ways’ from 2024’s Fragile As Humans is a quiet song, but this is not a failing. It’s why we lean closer to understand its message. The song has a bittersweet quality that I have spent many years listening for, maintining a playlist of such songs.
I think one of the reasons I was always drawn to indie folk music is its power to evoke emotions. There’s something about this song’s simple arrangement, thoughtful lyrics and an understated delivery that stir the depths in me. Also the line “This sadness can be beautiful” is a real tear jerker if you need one.
We begin with drums, never a bad place to start when they sound so good. The keys come in playing a version of the main vocal melody, along with some soft strings to pad things out. The vocal is soft and melodic, feeling vulnerable and intimate. I have heard one description of Emily’s voice as being ‘paper like’. The delivery suits the subject matter, which is about paying attention to the small things in life. It’s also a winter song, talking of shorter days but equally acknolwedging the coming of spring with lines like “Budding branch on fallen tree” and “I’m not who I used to be”. Almost as if slowing down and noticing things has brought you to a new realisation about yourself.
Emily is a poet as well as a songwriter and this song feels like a poem. It doesn’t realy have a traditional chorus, with an instrumental section serving as the B section. The strings pick up nicely in that section to accent that beautiful melody. There is a repetition of many lines throughout the song, including the title “The quiet ways that we have changed”. The first verse also repeats at the end. It shows that you don’t have to be a slave to traditional song structure to create something beautiful.
It sounds like there’s some other atmospheric elements (hums and crackles) in the song, leading from the A to the B section. The backing vocals are also understated but add a sweet top layer. The keys are also double tracked possibly and panned left and right. When the final A section comes in, the double bass peeks through saying ‘I was here the whole time!’ and the strings take the final note.
I’m looking forward to Emily’s next album and many more to come.