Album Review: Faye Webster – Atlanta Millionaires Club (Secretly Canadian)

21-year-old Faye Webster has just released her third album, a record that combines her lyrics of angst and loneliness with a unique musical blend of contemporary  r&b and American roots music.

Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Faye Webster couldn’t help but be influenced by that city’s thriving hip hop culture. But surprisingly, her favourite instrument is the much-maligned pedal steel guitar, usually associated with traditional country and Hawaiian music.

As a matter of fact, Room Temperature, the album’s opening track begins with the swoon of the pedal steel as Webster sings, “Looks like I’ve been crying again”. But the music isn’t maudlin or gloomy, instead it’s light, breezy, with an almost tropical vibe to it.

“I should get out more”, repeats Faye, and indeed, that may be both Webster’s biggest problem and the source of her songwriting inspiration.

The 10 songs the comprise Atlanta Millionaires Club find the young singer fretting over past relationships, turning seemingly innocuous moments…a glance, a moment of silence…into something that keeps her up at night… and gives her something to write about.

In Right Up My Neck, Faye focusses on a lingering scent of a lover, Jonny has her worrying whether her pet dog, who is her best friend, even knows her name and on Pigeon she ruminates over a note, apparently sent via pigeon to a long distance lover in Australia. She doesn’t worry whether the note arrived at its destination, but whether the intended recipient kept it or threw it away.

“It’s the little things”, she sings.

But those little things can add up to major anxiety.

Things come to a head during the final two tracks.

Flowers  features a rap from hip hop artist Father. Faye begins the tune with an airy intro and a statement of devotion, but Father’s harsh rap, filled with references to “niggas and bitches”, is a jolting juxtaposition that shows how Webster’s life may be clashing with her surrounding reality.

On album closer Jonny (Reprise), Webster revisits the subject of the earlier track, Jonny, but this time manages to finally say goodbye , freeing herself from her self-imposed torment.

All the while the music, co-produced by Drew Vandenberg creates a light, easy-going atmosphere with some tracks, such as Kingston, verging on lounge or easy listening due to the use of electric piano, flute and sax and, of course, the seemingly omnipresent pedal steel.

Overall, Atlanta Millionaires Club is an intriguing musical treat.

But as Webster sings in Hurts Me Too, “my mother told me one day, she’s tired of my sad songs”.

With that in mind, it’ll be interesting to see where Faye Webster goes next. Hopefully, she will get out more.

Marty Duda