Ohio born, Brooklyn-based artist Maria BC shares the title track, “Devil’s Rain”, from their upcoming EP to be released 05 February 2021 via Fear of Missing Out Records.
Recorded in Maria’s apartment through April and May last year, “Devil’s Rain”, named after an expression in the southern states handed down to Maria by their grandmother, interweaves softly plucked guitar with Maria’s soaring voice.
Elaborating on the song, Maria says:
“When I was little, I would spend summer months with my grandparents in northern Ohio. My grandmother would sit with me on the porch during rainstorms and read me chapter books.
While we sat on the porch swing one day, the sun came out while the rain kept pouring, and she taught me the term “devil’s rain.” I think it’s a Southern expression (my grandmother grew up in Kentucky).
I love the phrase, how sinister it is, and the event itself — sunshine and rain, co-occurring opposites — puts you in a spiritual mood, all wonder and melancholy.”
Lockdown has been a time of great intimacy for people across the globe, interrogating thoughts previously buried under busy schedules, bustling commutes and never-ending to-do lists. The debut EP from Ohio-born, Brooklyn-based artist Maria BC leans heavily into this sense of closeness and emotional vulnerability.
Recorded in their apartmen the ‘Devil’s Rain’ EP is concerned both with nostalgia and carving a better path forwards. From religion to childhood memories and giving advice to a depressed version of yourself, it’s a debut statement that tackles the big questions with openness and grace.
Created in a period of what they call “extraordinary urgency,” Maria says they became “obsessed” with the project. “Nothing about it is comforting. Music just seems necessary for whatever reason,” they say.
Musically, the EP is gorgeous and sparse, with Maria’s classical training as a mezzo-soprano mixing with hushed pop melodies and a love for the quiet grandeur of Grouper. In order not to disturb their neighbours and roommates during lockdown, Maria had to write and record the music on ‘Devil’s Rain’ quietly. The forced constraint helped them craft the songs as something approaching “hymns or lullabies.”
“Normally I belt when I sing,It constrained the melodies I could write, knowing I would need to be singing quietly, and it meant I couldn’t rely on certain old tricks to craft an arc.”
they say.
This added layer of intimacy onto an already stark emotional period is stunningly portrayed on ‘Devil’s Rain’; it feels like you’re right there in the apartment with them.
“Devil’s Rain” is released 05 February 2021 via Fear of Missing Out Records
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