New Music Review - ‘Cards’ the EP by Jennifer K. Austin
Jennifer K. Austin released her latest offering in the form of her EP, Cards, on 8th April 2023. PC: Jennifer’s EPK.
A fusion of multiple genres mixed together in a melting pot fresh off the stovetop, Jennifer K. Austin has recently unveiled her newest offering, a two-year-creation of her EP, Cards with the wait being well worth holding onto your patience for.
Jennifer, who was born in the United States is proud to now call herself a Kiwi and she brings along her American-style musical talents that we don’t have much on offer of here in New Zealand, where she is continuously flourishing with her career.
Cards holds many levels of distinctiveness for every song that is gracefully placed in front of us, meaning that you get many different sides of Jennifer to listen to, which I think turns the aspect of listening even shinier when hearing an EP. Jennifer has absolutely nailed it.
Dream Weaver is the opener to Cards and with it comes this old school, 90s rock-pop feel that could also be comparable in a way to what Paramore have released previously. However, Jennifer adds her own magical twist into the sound to tick all the boxes of making it indefinitely her own. Dream Weaver could easily be put onto a soundtrack for one of those teen rom-com movies because it also has this extremely edgy side to it that would perfectly suit that type of story.
Jennifer has these beautiful, infectious vocals that will easily capture your attention, making you want to follow her along this wonderous journey that she is on.
Cards would be my pick of favourites on the EP as the mellowness, emotion and just general good feeling of the song that is poised with country vibes really takes you to another space. There seems to be this electricity that jumps out from Cards, making it something that is hard to put into words. It just feels like a warm hug. Inviting, comforting, just generally a lovely song.
A collaboration with James Grant on the track In the Deep End creates this ambient, low-lit moving few minutes on the EP. Jennifer and James pairing together for this song adds this delight that you wouldn’t have known you previously needed. You should really take the time to soak this one in with minimal distractions if possible.
All in all, Cards has been intentionally put together to create this brilliant EP in which the tracks that come after one another just make sense. I think that this is something that listeners may not think about, however is important for musicians to order them in a way in which they feel that the EP is intended to be listened to, which I believe Jennifer has done here.
Cards is an EP that you should not skip on past.
You can follow along with Jennifer below -