RELEASED 19TH JUNE 2019

Favourite Track: Too Cool

A girl from Edinburgh has burst on the scene with clean Pop vocals and great backing music that I can’t wait to hear on the radio!

This was the first time I had heard of Edinburgh-born artist, Emily Burns. On looking into her bio on Spotify, I learned that she received support from BBC Radio 1, toured with Tove Stryke, had over 20 million streams and sold out headline shows across Europe and Asia. What I like most about her so far is the fact that she’s also a songwriter who, as with some of my own songs, has penned her lyrics based on some of her own experiences. PDA appears to be more of an EP since it’s only got 4 tracks on it titled ‘PDA’, ‘Too Cool’, Damn Good Liar’ and ‘Ahead of Yourself’. The cover art of PDA is interesting. It displays a cherub looking cupid with an arrow through his heart, looking up at the sky but in quite pop art colours. It was bold and I guess the idea of cupid being stabbed reflects the rejection of love/romance taken from the critical title of the album.

I began with the first track ‘PDA’ which opened in quite an acoustic way with clapping sounds and hums partnered with her very clean voice. Then about 30 seconds into the song, the beat and bass line come in and bring the song to life. It’s very strong and the production is great. There is constant build into a more commercial Pop sounding song but it’s really good. The backing vocals and harmonies are well placed and the lyrics tell her story. She’s definitely got a lot of talent and I can see how it’s no surprise she’s already touring and selling out venues because her music would be great live.

‘Too Cool’ again has that Taylor Swift-style Pop/acoustic sound but the UK version of it all. Her song is catchy and you can jam to this. I wouldn’t be surprised if her songs are played on the radio because they’re very commercial sounding (in a good way) and cleanly produced. I think anyone who likes Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Little Mix etc will like her music. Her voice is really nice and her range is decent which is why she can pull of these Pop songs well. ‘Damn Good Liar’ is another one where strummed guitar makes an appearance as well as harmonies. The chorus reminds me of another artist’s song but I can’t remember which one it was. The backing music with the synths and bass give the song extra dimensions to it which make it complete.

Her final song ‘Ahead of Yourself’ is all about her trying to tell a guy she’s not falling for him that quickly even though…she kinda is. This is another Pop song but another very well produced one. She sing probably best on this and the harmonies, echoes and vocal acrobatics and ad-libs work really nicely in this song. I like her music and I think she’ll definitely blow up even more than she already has. I wouldn’t be surprised if I hear her music on the radio or if her next album is a massive success.

This EP is probably something I’d have in a long car ride or have on in the background whilst I’m working or doing chores. It’s upbeat and positive sounding so it gets you in the right mood to do something and be productive (couldn’t have been released any sooner given my current to-do list ngl…)