Keeley Forsyth and Matthew Bourne 'Hand To Mouth' 12"

Described by Pitchfork as “arid and beautiful,” by Uncut as “astonishing,” and in The Sunday Times, “one of the most remarkable [albums] in years,” Keeley’s 2020 debut LP ‘Debris’ and follow-up 2022 album ‘Limbs’, drew unanimous praise, prompting comparisons with Nico, Beth Gibbons, Aldous Harding, Nick Cave, Anohni and even Scott Walker. It’s often stated that no one else is making music quite like this.

May 2024 saw the arrival of Keeley’s third studio album, ‘The Hollow’, and her first for the 130701 imprint from FatCat Records.

Keeley’s latest venture, ‘Hand To Mouth’, pushes this envelope further, through a deliberate exploitation of space and restraint as the key focus that underpins her latest collection of songs.

Keeley, along with longtime collaborator Matthew Bourne, have envisaged a programme of songs like this for some time. Drawing on their experience of performing paired-back voice and harmonium shows in previous years, ‘Hand To Mouth’ further echoes and refines this sensibility, exploiting minimal, mesmeric textures and elliptical musical structures.