Album Review/ Folk Rock : Jaybe Pomplas’s ‘This is How The World Ends’

Jayne Pomplas is a composer, fiddle player and a vocalist. Her songs are marked by the progressing confluence of all her crafts. It’s thoughtful, creative and full of acoustic flourish. Her latest release is ‘This is How The World Ends’.

The collection spans across the country - folk - Americana spectrum, looping in memorable moments of soul and roots. The concept of the album is also quite interesting. It has a morbidity to it, but it’s mellow and existential. The way she interprets and presents it starts a contemplative journey that you’ll be on across the collection. 

‘Sweeter Than Honey’ opens the album. It’s a descriptive stream of consciousness flow. Slow and oozing, the track has that archaic folklore feel. The rhythm, the acoustics and the atmosphere are all alive with momentous evolution. It doesn’t feel like it’s pre-written. There’s a lot of on the spot expression, intimacy and raw vulnerability that takes shape in this track. A great track to start off with because it really gives you a taste of the artistic style and spirit. 

There is a fun and frolic in the fiddle that she plays. You’ll see it light and playful in tracks like ‘Hit Single’ and ‘There is a Time’. These tracks have a nice old country swing to them, that is punctuated by the fiddle. These tracks have an instant feel-good warmth and a fun rhythm that transports you to a good time. 

Other tracks explore uncanny stylistic flows. Moments of artistic exploration that are captured in music. Like flying in amber. ‘Farewell to the Corncrake’ sees the fiddle as a witness to a solemn and thoughtful frame. The human experience that is set out with the instrument is quite interesting to follow. In ‘Bending the Curtains’, we see a spontaneous burst of the fiddle. It has an erratic rhythm with a divergent energy. It has the flow and makeup of a jazz jam. ‘Lonesome Boatman’ is another instrumental within the album. A track that delves into a melancholy that deepens in the context of the title. The scenes that she paints, the fiddle strokes with which she brings them to life is impressive and unique. Fine craftsmanship. 

‘Mother Superior’ and ‘Ninety Nine’ run emotionally deep. They portray intimate pain, poetic scenes, theatrical flows. It’s a cinema that you’re in with these tracks. Lastly, ‘Whiskey Pours’ and ‘Blackwater Side’ are absorbing tracks. There’s such a strong influence and presence of blues within these tracks. Ambient and moody, the scenes in these tracks open up to still frames that are then subtly detailed with wandering melodies. Her vocals also set in to cast the atmosphere with that cool warmth of blues. Listen Now! 

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The album is available for streaming on popular sites like Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, and Amazon Music! 

You can listen to ‘This is How The World Ends’ by Jayne Pomplas here -