Spotlight On... Annie Booth

Singer-songwriter Annie Booth has been grafting hard on the local circuit as a solo artist for close to ten years now. Having released her debut album An Unforgiving Light in 2017, she released her gorgeous Spectral EP in 2019. Her 2021 album Lazybody went on to make the longlist for the 2022 Scottish Album of the Year Award, and this Friday she releases her latest EP, the heart-shattering The Brace.

Deeply personal music is what we’ve come to expect from Booth, and that's exactly what we get on The Brace as she charts the demise of a relationship across its four tracks. Finding clarity and comfort on closer Notice to Leave, she acknowledges: ‘The birds don’t look backwards / The night is upon us / And there’s not gonna be / A sky like this again’. It’s a freeing gut punch at the end of a record that really takes you on a journey. With a couple of its singles already out, and the full EP due to land at the end of this week, we catch up with Booth to find out more.

First thing’s first, I’m pretty sure I spotted you at Hidden Door this year… were you on crutches or did I imagine that?
Yeah, I’ve not been leaving the flat very much and wanted to check out Day Sleeper’s set – they were absolutely brilliant. The venue for Hidden Door was so cool and atmospheric this year. I had an ankle injury that showed up slowly and the recovery’s been quite gnarly – I'm still on crutches and wearing a brace out and about. (This is completely unrelated to the EP title, as that would have been a bit on the nose!)

I don’t think we’ve spoken to you since 2019 and I feel like a lot has happened since then, both musically for yourself as well as generally in the world. How have things been for you post-SAY Award nomination? What have you been up to?
Just trudging along really – have had some beautiful times and some really challenging ones. Had a few years navigating all the terrible stuff that came along with the pandemic, and working away to make a living (I was based at the National Galleries of Scotland for ages, and am currently working at a charity.) Playing with Constant Follower at SXSW a few years back was a definite highlight – I had never been to Austin or the US before.

You’re releasing your latest EP next Friday which explores a relationship running its course. Can you tell us more about the EP, and how you found the process for channeling such a personal experience into its four tracks?
I approached the EP with the mindset of creating for the sake of creating – it was important to me to be brave and record something from this period, and it helped me process a lot. In the past, I’ve really wanted to push myself and create something great – here, I was just relieved that I’d made something at all. Of course Duncan Jones and Jolon Yeoman (my talented friends who produced and mixed the EP) worked extremely hard, and made something we were [all] proud of – but I was hoping the songs would bloom and unfurl naturally, capturing the complex emotions I felt while writing the songs.

How do you feel knowing it’s about to be released into the world?
Feel alright, hoping some folk hear it – and like it too, as a bonus! 

I wanted to also talk a little bit about collaboration. On the record you’ve got Morgan Morris from No Windows on drums – how did that partnership come about and can we expect more in the future from the two of you?
Morgan did an exceptional, understated job on the drums – he just walked in and nailed it. Jolon was convinced the EP would be better with drums, and he was right – he just called up Morgan halfway through recording. It would be very cool to work with Morgan again.

Image: The Brace artwork by Kit Martin

I’d also love to know more about the beautiful cyanotype artworks from Kit Martin that perfectly accompany the EP as well as a couple of the singles – what was it that drew you to Kit’s work and how did that collaboration come about?
Glad you like them! I felt very lucky that Kit said yes to working together. She’s an artist based in Fife who works with cameraless processes, printmaking and moving images. We selected artworks that emphasised the comfort and healing quality of nature in times of distress. I stumbled across Kit’s art through Theo Bleak’s most recent release – they’re a musician I don’t know personally but really admire.

Beyond the EP, what does the rest of the year have in store for you? Anything else in the pipeline?
I was chatting to the folk at Knockwood Studio about doing a chilled launch of the EP sometime in August so keep an eye on their socials (@knockwood__studio) if you’d like to come along. Other than that, I’m focusing on healing, getting better, and navigating my stairs so that I can catch some summer rays.

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The Brace is released on 18 Jul

Follow Annie Booth on Instagram @annieboothmusic