Tessa Rose Jackson's The Lighthouse: A Luminous Folk Rebirth from Grief
In a remarkable artistic evolution, Dutch-British musician Tessa Rose Jackson has delivered her most personal and compelling work to date with The Lighthouse. Moving decisively from her previous dream-pop explorations under the moniker Someone, Jackson's fourth album represents a raw, rich, and deeply authentic folk rebirth that transforms profound loss into something quietly powerful.
From Dream Pop to Acoustic Clarity
Jackson's musical journey has taken a significant turn with this latest offering. Where her previous three albums as Someone explored dream-pop textures and atmospheric soundscapes, The Lighthouse emerges from a period of solitary creation in rural France, embracing acoustic clarity and emotional transparency. The warm, resonant sounds of folk guitar provide the album's foundation, creating connections that time-travel from Bert Jansch's intricate fingerpicking to REM's melodic sensibilities and Sharon Van Etten's emotional depth.
Navigating Grief with Poetic Grace
The album's thematic core revolves around Jackson's personal experience of loss, particularly the death of one of her two mothers during her teenage years. This profound event informs the lyrical landscape throughout The Lighthouse, approached with an inquisitive, poetic sensibility that feels both refreshing and deeply moving.
The title track opens the album with strums of perfect fifths, low woodwind moans, and thundering percussion, framing a journey toward a beacon at "high tide on a lonesome wind." This establishes the album's central metaphor of navigating emotional darkness toward illumination.
Standout Tracks and Musical Evolution
Several tracks demonstrate Jackson's growing confidence and musical maturity:
- The Bricks That Make the Building emerges as a sweet psych-folk jewel that meditates on fundamental connections: "the earth that feeds the garden / The breath that helps the child sing"
- Gently Now begins in soft clouds of birdsong before tackling how aging can cosset the grieving process
- Fear Bangs the Drum and Wild Geese showcase poppier production that buoys the album's spry limbs, recalling singles by This Is the Kit or Aldous Harding
- Built to Collide drives forward with percussive violin shivers and pacy drums, creating radio-friendly catnip
Vocal Mastery and Simpler Moments
Jackson's voice proves particularly captivating throughout the album, floating assuredly between delicate phrasing and spirited sprechgesang without ever sounding smug. This vocal mastery shines brightest in the album's simpler arrangements:
- The piano-led Grace Notes showcases emotional restraint and melodic beauty
- Final track Prizefighter delivers a powerful closing statement
- By Morning opens with a guitar melody that arrives with the timeless quality of a Paul Simon classic
Contemporary Folk Landscape
Jackson's luminous rebirth arrives alongside other notable folk releases this month. Irish folk band Ye Vagabonds present their fourth album All Tied Together, produced by Philip Weinrobe (known for his work with Big Thief and Adrianne Lenker). The album thrums with slow-burning, moving songs populated by arresting characters who emerge from lyrical mists.
Meanwhile, Adam Weikert's To Whom Ourselves We Owe offers an engagingly gutsy and noisy exploration of traditional songs, while Contra Madre by Nomad War Machine and the late pedal steel player Susan Alcorn thrillingly mixes her talents with death metal elements.
Against this diverse backdrop, Tessa Rose Jackson's The Lighthouse stands out as a particularly coherent and emotionally resonant achievement, marking a significant milestone in her artistic development and offering listeners a beautifully crafted journey through grief toward grace.
