Grace Petrie is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist from Leicester and her upcoming album, Build Something Better, will be her 11th. Her music is relentlessly political but optimistically so, with hope and anger in equal measure. She is a self-described “socialist, feminist, lesbian left-wing protest singer.”
In the time since 2006, Petrie has made a name for herself amongst other left-wing musicians, touring with Billy Bragg and Frank Turner, among others. She is openly lesbian and alongside her musical career, has performed a successful stand-up comedy tour named Butch Ado About Nothing. Petrie has performed at Glastonbury annually since 2010 when she was invited by Billy Bragg.
The new single, Start Again, has been produced by Frank Turner and brings Petrie’s trademark lyrical aplomb. It’s melodic with an unmistakable folky twang, lifted by piano notes and a backing vocalist who comes in at just the right moments to lift Petrie’s heartfelt words.
Petrie’s acoustic guitar is frequently accompanied by the usual array of folk instruments like the fiddle and the mandolin but Start Again introduces a piano track new to her music. This could be the influence of Turner as a producer – his music is frequently backed by piano. It works well, the refrain finding a comfortable home amongst the strings.
The song is about the power of solidarity in the face of hard times. “Look for me, honey there I’ll be, yeah and piece by piece, I’ll pick you right back up and start again,” comes the refrain. It’s a clever song, as all Petrie’s are, but the lyrics are comforting too. It’s easy to get caught up in them. The song easily invokes those people we all have, the ones who will pick us back up.
However, more than the individual, the song speaks of leftists more generally. There are unprecedented challenges facing minorities in the world at the moment, and the song encourages a continued kind of togetherness. It would be easy to read it cynically, but Petrie’s back catalogue gives the lie to that temptation. She is as earnest and idealistic now as she always has been. She wants her music to bring unity to a disparate world and Start Again does.
Petrie’s new album, Build Something Better, promises to continue the excellent start set by Start Again and releases on March 8. Grace Petrie is also touring, starting on February 21. She plays in Edinburgh’s Summerhall on February 29, and there are still tickets available.
Listen to Start Again on Spotify, Bandcamp, and YouTube today.
Featured image credit: Grace Petrie
Student journalist & freelance writer. Check out Quick Play, where I review video games that are 10 hours or less.
