Maggie Pope - “Crow”

We’ve been fans of Philadelphia-based singer-songwriter Maggie Pope ever since she sent us “The Wandering.” And once you’ve pressed play on “Crow,” her latest offering to the world of raw and stripped-back folk music, you are going to spin it until the end of time.

To be quite honest, we did not even have to listen before we knew we would feature “Crow” on our blog. There are a handful of artists that we immediately say yes to, simply by seeing their names pop up in our stack of submissions; Pope is one of these artists. But if you grapple with “feelings of being misunderstood and unseen,” you may have just found your new theme song.

“Crow” opens to the lo-fi and gritty sounds of piano keys, hammering out a melody as though coming from just down the hall. The arrival of an acoustic guitar and gentle percussion prompt Pope’s emotive vocal performance to begin, intimately delivering lyrics that will weave their way into your soul, likely stirring some emotions you have long forgotten. 

The hook invites Pope to utilize her breathy upper register and it, alone, is worth the price of admission, with her voice soaring through the sparse arrangement, fully saturating the sonic landscape. As the track rolls on, your ears shall be greeted by some orchestral percussive elements, as well as ghostly backing vocals that add a significant dynamic width to the entire production.

However, it is the final third of the song that brings a passionate culmination of all these sounds, climaxing in a final grand crescendo. For a song that is closing in on a six-minute runtime, Pope has crafted “Crow” to deliver an introspective voyage through your existence, ultimately ending with you feeling seen.

-HD