Best Girl Athlete
Carve Every Word
(Fitlike Records)
Put that cynicism back in the cupboard right now. Katie Buchan (aka Best Girl Athlete) may well be 15 and still at a pupil at Aberdeen Grammar School, and her dad Charley (aka CS Buchan) might have released a few albums himself and be owner of the Fitlike label, but this is no ordinary leg up the industry ladder.
When Katie covers her dad's songs, she improves them, adding a catchy pop element to the underlying indie-folk of Winter Sun and Leave It All Behind; and perhaps you can hear the influence of his influences - an Elliott Smith factor, for example - on Turn On The Radio. But when co-writing or coming up with original material, she goes beyond Nina Nesbitt-style musical selfies as her voice (sometimes double-tracked in wide stereo to allow her to harmonise with herself) carries a shadow of melancholy that is often beautifully and emotionally counterbalanced by Pete Harvey's cello in the string arrangements.
I've seen Ellie Goulding and Camera Obscura namechecked when describing Best Girl Athlete and, while both are accurate, neither properly nails the bright young talent emerging here. And all achieved while her peers are scribbling boys' initials on their maths jotters.
Alan Morrison
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