Folk aficionado Marika Hackman premieres her track ‘Open Wide’ with us ahead of the release of her debut album, ‘We Slept At Last’.

Despite sounding ghostly, Marika Hackman’s voice is oddly comforting. Rising and falling effortlessly around sometimes awkward cadences, her raspy delivery contrasts starkly with the rich melody from the accompanying guitar on her track ‘Open Wide’. The melancholic intervals between notes are psych-filled and claustrophobic – here, that’s a good thing, bringing a darkness and edge to an often fixed genre.

Marika’s entire debut is fresh material, with the single ‘Animal Fear’ due for release the same day as the album, on 16th February. Produced by Alt-J’s Charlie Andrew, the album also comes with a collection of images by Californian photographer, Glen Erler. All the photographs will be exhibited on 18th February at the Cob Gallery, Camden. Marika will also perform ‘We Slept At Last’ in full, with her band.

‘We Slept At Last’ will be released on 16th February via Dirty Hit Records.

Words: Lily Walker