Lizzie Mayland, the guitarist of the double BRIT Award-winning band The Last Dinner Party, has announced their debut solo EP, ‘The Slow Fire Of Sleep,’ set for release on May 9th. The news arrives alongside the unveiling of the EP’s first single, the captivating ‘Lighthouse.’
‘Lighthouse,’ the sole preview of the upcoming project, is accompanied by an ethereal visualiser directed by Cal McIntyre, a frequent collaborator of Mayland’s.
Of the song, Lizzie states,
The seeds for ‘The Slow Fire Of Sleep’ were sown during the transitional periods between tours with The Last Dinner Party, in the liminal space where Mayland found themself neither fully immersed in the touring life nor completely settled back into their everyday routine.
The five tracks comprising ‘The Slow Fire Of Sleep’ showcase a more personal and introspective dimension of Mayland’s musicality, drawing inspiration from artists such as Nick Drake, Eva Cassidy, and Adrianne Lenker, alongside the ambient soundscapes of Brian Eno and notable film scores like Alex Turner’s ‘Submarine’ EP and Oliver Coates’ ‘Aftersun’ compositions.
The EP’s titular and closing track, ‘The Slow Fire Of Sleep,’ was born from a sense of despair regarding the ongoing global environmental crisis. Juxtaposing delicate fingerstyle guitar work with a devastatingly scaled outro, the track encapsulates the EP’s exploration of vulnerability, loneliness, and introspection. The collection delves into themes of an isolated youth navigating gender identity (‘Mother Mother’), a rural upbringing finding its place in urban life (‘Homeward’), and the challenges of maintaining a long-distance relationship (‘Lighthouse’ and ‘From the Other Side of the World I’d Hear You’), all delivered with a beguiling honesty.
