Soap and Skin - Lovetune For Vacuum

Few musical discoveries in recent years have been as staggering as that of Soap&Skin aka Anja
Plaschg. The sheer force this eighteen year old artist injects into her compositions almost
beggars belief, her songs consuming every last drop of her with no regard for grace. Then again,
the 13 deeply melancholic compositions of piano are so drenched in beauty and gracefulness, one
could crumble on hearing them.
· ‘Lovetune For Vacuum’ is an unwavering line of drama, inner conflict and melancholy,
remarkably mature on the one hand, yet feeding on unbridled youthful exuberance on the other.
The album’s songs were recorded mostly just by Plaschg herself, who rather resembles a
tragically rebellious heroine flung into the present like a shivering ghost of the Victorian Brontë
sisters, far too worldly-wise for such a young slip of a girl.
· “An astonishing debut by Soap&Skin's Anja Plaschg, an 18-year-old Austrian girl whose strange,
high-wire torchsongs recall Cat Power's early albums, and the gothic past of PJ Harvey.” – The
Guardian, “Anja Plaschg's debut is drenched in gothic charm; a piano-led insight into her
extraordinary worldview. Like Marissa Nadler and Laura Marling before, she is fine-tuned at
creating off-kilter folk with a breadth and depth that makes this set a contemporary concern while
being classically timeless. This album feels more like an epic journey with every listen” – Music
Week, “Straight outta Vienna like a rain front, all silver keys, black spaces and delicate
observations which shade into shouts when momentum spills into emotion” – Plan B.

So, what do you think? Best reviewer each month gets £10 off their next order!