Madi Foster - “White Lines”

Madi Foster has one of those voices you could sit and listen to all day. It’s honest; it’s emotional; it’s very “right now,” while also having that flavorful vintage tinge. Although this review is for her latest single, “White Lines,” I encourage you to listen to “En Rose,” one of her 2021 releases. It’s unapologetically raw and the kind of song that feels like a private conversation with a friend, once you wait the eighteen seconds for the guitar to join in, then a gradual crescendo as more instruments walk into the room. For the sake of the harmonies alone, listen to it.

On the other hand, “White Lines” begins with a guitar and piano, already less intimate than “En Rose,” but equally as engaging. She effortlessly breaks into falsetto, nearly channeling Brandi Carlile with vibrato and a hint of that signature rasp. The steel guitar and drums join in, enough to let you know that they are there, but exit just as quickly, while Madi encourages her listeners to “open your eyes” and “let in the light.” It’s a very tender track and a gem in the giant mountain that is indie folk.

At this point in writing the review, I had only listened to the two songs mentioned, but “Slow Motion” seems to be her most popular track, and I’m now a fan, so… here goes: This one begins with a droning acoustic, slightly reminiscent of Bon Iver’s “Blindsided,” which just so happens to be one of the greatest indie folk songs on this planet. “Slow Motion” is definitely another winner, again, with the harmonies, the soft hints of what I assume is a banjo, and that glorious lap steel.

Madi Foster’s songs are real. And by that, I mean that they could have just as easily been recorded in one take, with the band sitting in the living room. There is no flashy production and no obvious autotune. They are stories; they are secrets; they are the truth.

-TM

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