Impressed is proud to present Naarm/Melbourne based alt-folk singer & songwriter Bec Sykes' debut studio album Pepperpot Magic on very limited edition vinyl.
Pepperpot Magic seamlessly blending the intimate with the universal, the magic with the mundane as she traverses trauma, heartache and healing over a rich, and sometimes gritty backdrop of indie-folk slow jams.
The album was recorded and produced by Robert Muiños at the Rat Shack in Naarm/Melbourne and features Matt Dixon on pedal steel guitar, Ronan Nicholson on bass, Bradley Ellis on electric guitar and Sam Raines on drums.
Pepperpot Magic - named for a now-defunct fairy/occult shop - departs from the sparse yearning of Sykes’ previous releases in favour of a more densely textured approach as she reclaims her power after leaving her Christian upbringing and a relationship behind. It’s singer-songwriter music at its core, with many of the songs set, and all of them penned, in suburban Naarm/Melbourne - with Bec Sykes’ warm, honeyed vocals right up front and the band’s restrained arrangements subtly but powerfully building the world of each song.
This was on of Impressed's discoveries of 2024.
Exploring themes of anxiety (Do You Dream In Colour, Joan of Arc), recovery and being open (Sculpture, Paint The House Grey), feeling uneasy in romantic relationships, (Last To Know, I Know What You Like), lovesick frustration (Joshua, Caroline, Crow Song) and religious and family trauma (Marlene, Six), the album is underpinned by a reclamation of power after leaving both a relationship Sykes asserts “wasn’t right for me”, and her Christian upbringing.
"Pepperpot Magic is all the things I've been too afraid to say out loud that I've instead poured into these songs. It contains all the feelings I can't put into words. I wrote the songs when I was going through the worst anxiety of my life, and they were all written as a self-soothing mechanism.” - Bec Sykes
"A dreamy, achingly tender alt-folk triumph." - Atwood Magazine
Pressed on limited edition marbled random regrind vinyl - each one is completely unique, though mostly teal/blue/purple - with an individually numbered obi strip. Strictly limited to 100 copies.
Available now for pre-order. We'll ship on 11th April 2025.
Free shipping Australia wide, shipping and taxes calculated at checkout for ROW.