Born and raised in Virginia, Natalie Prass spent her teenage years absorbing the strange patterns and textures of the US east coast. Having spent her high school years playing in bands with Matthew E. White, Prass recorded a demo on an iPhone and sent it off to Jenny Lewis – becoming her keyboardist before moving to Nashville in 2006. In Texas is where Prass began to hone her own unique sound, a mixture of disarming sincerity and uniquely tinged romantic storytelling. Taking her own time to songcraft, Prass recorded her eponymous debut in 2014 with White – a record that has shown her to be one of the most distinctive and talented voices of this generation. Put out through Colombia Records at the start of 2015, it has quickly become one of the early frontrunners for album of the year.
Critics quickly fell in love with Prass’ LP, with The Guardian being particularly effusive, noting “The touchstones here, such as Dusty in Memphis, are all records that revel in a particular kind of musicality, yet this is a record that never feels retro, just timeless” – and awarding a perfect 10/10 mark. Pitchfork gave the album the much-coveted Best New Music award, writing in their 8.3/10 review, “[it is] a warm, intimate debut album that leaves space for darker contemplation—those stray thoughts that light you up at the end of the night”. Best Fit (9/10), Paste Magazine (8.4/10), The AV Club (8.3/10), Mojo (8/10), Q (8/10), The Independent (8/10), and Uncut (8/10) were among the many other publications to fall for Prass’ singular charms.
