Marissa Burwell and Deer Anna

Marissa Burwell writes with one hand reaching out to her past and the other stretching out towards the future, all the while keeping both feet planted in the Saskatchewan snow. Following her self-titled debut EP in 2019, Marissa Burwell continued her musical journey by releasing her first full-length album, “Bittersweet” in 2022. Now, she is eagerly preparing to release her second EP, “Either Way.“
 
The songs on “Either Way” were written through different points of reflection, some songs were written in the eye of the storm, while others were created after the city centre had been rebuilt. Each song explores an unspoken experience, whether it’s daydreaming about what could be or about what is.
 
Writing took place in varying environments; empty rooms where the vocals hung overhead and on the floors of a rental apartment booked for a reunion weekend with friends. Once the songs were in sharing form, Madison Nicol and Chris Dimas (Bleeker, Surf Dads) produced and engineered the EP, pulling on influences from artists such as Hannah Cohen and Haley Blais. Joining Burwell on the EP are fellow Regina musicians Tom Duffy, on guitar, and Lana Winterhalt, who contributes harmonies and a clarinet to “Kiss Her”.
 
On the EP’s lead single “Coward”, Burwell lays bare her vulnerabilities as she ponders her inability to speak up. With “Kiss Her”, a song sonically inspired by Hannah Cohen, Burwell writes about resentment towards the heterosexual norms and in particular how they “set you up to see women loving women relationships as something that can serve men instead of as an option for love“. Burwell daydreams on “You’re Not Trying Very Hard” about wanting to be with someone who isn’t good for you and the fear of what would happen were they even to show the slightest bit of interest in you. Finally on “Either Way“, we see tough questions being asked at the crossroads of a relationship. Together the four songs cover themes of hope, healing and love.  
 
 
Deer Anna
 
A scream doesn’t always have to be loud. In the case of Hamburg indie pop musician Deer Anna, it sounds soft, casual, and true. Sometimes I’m Dizzy When I Scream is the name of the young artist’s debut album. And this dizziness, the giddiness and reeling set in when the panic attacks come, when depression takes over one’s body. But also when beauty makes everything in you waver to the best of its ability. When sadness is washed away by the gentle force of a concert and happiness shines through.
 
With her transparent and incredibly catchy indie dream pop, Deer Anna opens up a world of its own in which all these emotions flow into a finely shimmering work of art. Above all, there is her wonderfully narrative singing. With twang, somnambulistic and strong, her English is warm and washed-out, cool and approachable in equal measure. Accompanied by her guitar with serene finesse and intensified by the band’s sound full of tension. The fact that Deer Anna is also responsible for her artwork, merchandise and some of her videos shows impressively how much she understands her art as a holistic concept of life. Deer Anna creates a special atmosphere that doesn’t want to force anything. And which therefore catches and stimulates you all the more.