‘Drive’, the latest single from Welsh songstress Ailsa Tully, is a delicate examination of how life passes us by when we stare out of the window.
Opening with a plucky yet melancholic bass guitar, the singer-songwriter laments working “fingers to the bone”, which eats into her “precious time”. So often a measure of success, Tully reminds us that having a frantic lifestyle doesn’t necessarily equate to grasping the wheel with both hands.
It might seem a gloomy start, but there’s a distance to the Welsh native’s lull which amalgamates in a dream-like haze of hopefulness. There’s a real sense that window-gazing can be a hopeful escape, not just for difficult reflection. For every reference to “Working on and on and on…”, echoes and swirls of a desire to “just drive / with no purpose and no desires” turn the track into a nostalgic soundscape.
Tully is a member of her church choir and while ‘Drive’ is certainly no hymn, there are echoing themes of trust and perseverance. Comfort is drawn from the “silver lining in the sky” and soft, wandering instrumentals which offer a lightness, stretching to the horizon as Tully lingers over every utterance.
Newly signed to Dalliance Recordings (Gia Margaret, Common Holly), Tully’s faith in her craft is ushering the artist away from the Welsh borders to the national stage. ‘Drive’ is a melodic and meditative introduction which is sure to capture the imagination of a population longing to escape the present.
Words by Adam Goldsmith