Review: Chloe Rodgers marches on with beautiful new single Back To The Quay
- by Joe Sharratt
- in Reviews
For now, Jake Bugg arguably remains Nottingham’s biggest recent star, but he should be wary because hot on his heels in Chloe Rodgers, the latest breakthrough act to emerge from the city’s burgeoning underground scene.
Rodgers first came to local fame when she won Notts Factor in 2016, a battle of the bands style competition that the then teenager was unwittingly entered into by her boss while she was interning at a record label. The success launched her career in Nottingham, where she has been steadily gigging ever since, save for the lengthy hiatus imposed by the Coronavirus pandemic, of course.
Her performances and burgeoning YouTube presence caught the attention of Swedish producer and artist Anders Kallmark, who enlisted Rodgers to front his Twenty Committee ensemble. Since then, Rodgers has released a steady slew of singles, with her most recent effort being the sweetly named Back To The Quay.
For newcomers to Rodgers, it’s a great introduction, a smart and relatively minimal alt-pop concoction pairing gentle acoustic guitar and her remarkable vocals that hint at influences including Bjork and PJ Harvey.
Writing on her official Facebook page on the eve of the track’s launch, Rodgers revealed the story behind the song: “My next single, Back To The Quay is out at midnight. It’s about my tremendous papa. Tremendous was one of his favourite words! I wish so much he could hear what my music is like now, my sound has changed so much since he was alive and I know he would’ve loved it so much.
“The lyrics are about how amazing he was in our lives, his battle with a brain tumour, an operation gone wrong and losing him. What a great friend he would’ve been right now!! You all would have loved him!
“You know, before I was even ready to admit it to myself when it was still very taboo back in school he told me that if I ever realised I was bisexual that he’d shout it proudly from the rooftops!! which helped me to accept myself a bit more when I was being bullied for it.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgwXP_R64QI
