Martha Tilston - The Tape (2021) Hi-Res

English folk singer Martha Tilston pulls off an impressive hat-trick of debuts as writer, director and star of this sweet-natured and gently charming Cornish-set romance. The script might be a little threadbare and some of the acting has a here’s-a-mate-I-roped-in-to-help quality. But it bobs along like a flip flop on waves of likability, with a genuinely warm and down-to-earth performance from Tilston. She plays folk singer Tally who is disillusioned with the music industry, living out of her campervan and working – in her own words – as “Cornwall’s worst cleaner”.

‘The Tape’ is a well crafted beautiful collection of songs which transport the listener to a contemplative space where they are able to explore their connection to others and the environment. Tilston notes that she hopes that people feel moved when watching her film (and listening to the soundtrack) – “if they then go outside and sit with their back to a moss-drenched tree, stand on the rocks and shout at the sea, write that book, sing that song, kiss the person they love, it will have been worth it.” Tilston’s return to Cornwall and making of this film is her ode to the natural world and our connection to it and the need to look after it. The songs are hopeful tributes and the piano led music evokes an emotional response as the seemingly simple repeated motifs hook the listener in to the tale she is telling.

Tilston’s vocals are clear, honest and emotive and her lyrics are incisive and resonate on repeated listens. The music is based around piano with some additional violin and acoustic guitar drifting in and out allowing her vocals space to pull the listener in. Tilston sings about the character wanting “to be the summer in your skin. All you have to do is breathe out and breathe in.” On ‘Bigger bridges’ she sings “ You are just a chapter in the story that will go on long long long after you.” Tilston has created an album which deserves to be heard as widely as possible and the music will stay with you long after you first hear it.