Memory Be a Blade

When Stockholm-based musician Kendra Egerbladh started sharing her music under the handle waterbaby in the early to mid-2020s, she was noted for a sophisticated alt-pop that combined light touches of jazz, hip-hop, downtempo, and atmospheric bedroom pop on songs with highly personal lyrics. Her full-length and Sub Pop label debut, Memory Be a Blade, reveals a surprising evolution in sound that retains the influence of jazz and broader alternative inspirations while relying less on gloss and aura and more heavily on acoustic instruments like strings. The result is something physically closer, more delicate, and more diaristic while at the same time more intricate. The album was produced by Marcus White, her main collaborator since before becoming waterbaby, so there were no outer forces at play in the development, although the songs were inspired by a breakup. The brief, under-half-hour track list begins with the mournful "Sink," a hushed, spare entry with otherworldly layered vocals backed by piano, acoustic guitar, double bass, and improvisational drums. While the album remains resigned and quiet in nature, the poppier "Memory Be a Blade" is next, featuring something closer to a typical band arrangement with its grooving rhythm section, piano, strings, and additional bongos, among other instruments. Rapper/singer ttoh (Egerbladhs brother) appears on two of the songs, the wistful "Clay" and the bright, staccato "Beck n Call," representing dreamy reminiscences and an alternate universe where the relationship worked out. Shes still ruminating over her ex ("those serious eyes"), her memories, and what went wrong on final track "Srs Ice," whose rippling piano, rim clicks, and sustained, chord progression-marking horns underscore and later amplify his presence in her mind. By its final "mmm," Memory Be a Blades title has come into sharp focus. ~ Marcy Donelson