Florence Clementine – ‘One Mile Upstream’ album review: An elevated and adventurous return
THE SKINNY: In 2015, Flo Morrissey was picked out as the new darling of the folk world. Off the back of a video of her singing ‘If You Can’t Love This All Goes Away’, she was plucked from obscurity, given a record deal, released her debut album, began working with Gucci, collaborated with Matthew E. White and then, seemingly, disappeared. Now returning as Florence Clementine, her new album One Mile Upstream beautifully tackles the necessary yet difficult transformation that comes with motherhood as she reconnects with her past from a new vantage point.
To say that Clementine ‘disappeared’ feels like the wrong word. In the same way that people talk about how Patti Smith shunned the music world in the 1980s to go off and raise her children and the countless other ways that motherhood seems to alter the public’s perception of a performer or the persona they can put forward, there is still an undeniable tension and battle involved in balancing a career and a family as a woman. So even though Flo Morrissey’s solo career took a backseat as she married and had her two children, the re-emergence of Clementine proves that this period, through all its trials, tribulations and transformations, has been deeply and richly inspiring.
As expected, One Mile Upstream is stunningly sung. Clementine’s voice still holds all the beauty and emotional power that first made her name and caught the world’s attention. Everything the world saw and loved in her then, from her unique timbre to her simple yet vivid folk lyricism, is not only intact but is elevated with a new maturity. But given that this return came as Clementine was merely attempting to reconnect with her own music, giving herself space and time away from the family home to ground back into who she is beyond the domestic sphere, the album is incredibly adventurous.
It’s a record of two sides. On one hand, there is the simple and pure blues-tinged folk that position Clementine in the lineage of Joan Baez, Vashti Bunyan, Judee Sill, Molly Drake, and beyond. It has a timeless quality, as songs like ‘Guccibility’, ‘Wellsprings’, and the standout love song ‘Overwhelmed’ feel like they would have fit right in at Newport Folk Festival or on the Greenwich Village scene.
On the other hand, there is a rich and bold cinematic streak as Clementine not only reconnects with herself as an artist but also proves herself to be a more confident one. It’s here that the input of Benjamin Clementine, her husband, producer and an artist in his own right, comes through clearly. Reminiscent of the sonic world of And I Have Been, his latest album, which Florence collaborated on too along with their duo project The Clememtines, her husband’s influence brings in darkness, tension and complexity with full orchestral details and a rebellious streak when it comes to classical elements. As sung in ‘Overwhelmed’, the pair now not only share a true love but exist in a state of shared inspiration where each other’s “genius” guides the other. With his input here, One Mile Upstream is not just Florence Clementine’s return but is her most interesting and adventurous release to date.
The origin of the album came when Clementine was encouraged by her husband to take time to herself and return to this part of herself that had been halted in the hecticness of family life. But this is so much more than a return. Florence Clementine more than usurps Flo Morrissey as she takes all that raw talent the world first saw and delivers it now as a more mature, more artistic and more interesting package with years of creativity and inspiration running through it.
For fans of: Old school folk with new-school intrigue.
A concluding comment from 2015 Flo Morrissey: “Wait, so do we not like Gucci anymore?”
One Mile Upstream track by track
Release date: October 18th | Producer: Benjamin Clementine | Label: Preserve Artists
‘Carbohybabe’: To open this album of reconnection, Florence Clementine seems to first reconnect with herself, tracing back through a lifetime, giving herself grace and care from her new vantage point as an adult and a parent. When it levels up and the instrumentation kicks in, it’s a gorgeous slice of jovial folk. [3.5/5]
‘Wellsprings’: It goes without saying that each and every one of these tracks is sung incredibly beautifully as Clementine’s voice still holds the same gripping angelic edge and emotional power as it did when she first broke out. This song especially harnesses that but with a distinctly spontaneous edge, as these songs aren’t overthought or overdone. [3.5/5]
‘Braindrops’: The production value levels up for the biggest song so far as Clementine positions herself at the head of a bluesy folk band. It’s not the lyrical best on the record, but in the bolder sounds, it’s a great look at the sonics that are inspiring her now as her folk heart is elevated by the orchestral details that her husband and producer, Benjamin Clementine, has mastered. [3/5]
‘New Lease’: From start to finish, this track is fascinating and stunning. Clementine lets her voice run as if the melodies are powered solely by feeling, picking up and slowing to draw attention to certain words. Around her, an orchestra swells as this song feels more like an opera than a folk song, giving her the instrumental majesty that the voice more than deserves. [4.5/5]
‘Guccibility’: A ditty that could have been sung by Baez back in the 1960s. It feels timeless in its simplicity, like all good folk songs with a moral centre are. [3.5/5]
‘Different Needs’: This is an album of two halves: classic folk songs and adventurous, cinematic compositions. This is the latter as the simplicity of her lyricism gains real tension thanks to the swelling and complex instrumentation. [4/5]
‘Overwhelmed’: One of the most beautiful love songs penned in recent years. Here, the Clementines write their story, recalling their early days in Paris and the productive nature of protecting connection and love. “I’m overwhelmed with your love”, she croons, combining the gorgeous simplicity of her earlier works with the new experimental instrumental details that this love has clearly introduced her to. [4.5/5]
‘Sinking River’: A gorgeous poem put to music about the inner world of a person, the domestic realm and the never-ending work involved in self-improvement or keeping yourself together. [3.5/5]
‘Tranformation’: Released as a single ahead of the record, ‘Tranformation’ feels like Clementine’s theme tune for this project. It’s an ode to her development, and her refusal to accept that change means limitation. [3/5]
‘Streaming Lady’: Another timeless folk track closes the album as Clementine solidifies her role in a clear lineage of poetic singers who rule the genre. [3/5]
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