Preaching from the Pews: Saint Saviour

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Becky – aka Saint Saviour – has already carved a niche for herself in our hearts with two sublime EPs in 2011 (Sukeei and Anatomy) and a series of DIY videos. Having gathered enough support from her fans, she’s now ready to release her debut album in 2012.

Saint Saviour is firmly one to keep an ear out for in the coming year, especially if you’re looking for a credible alternative to the over played and over hyped sound of Florence + the Machine.

Becky is a Stockton-on-Tees native who has now settled in London. Her sound slinks in somewhere between the elegant seductiveness of Goldfrapp, the electro pop sass of Austra  and all the vocal historonics of an early Kate Bush, given sonic freedom by an expansive pop suite of shoegaze and the textures of M83. But crucially Saint Saviour is underpinned by some seriously good songwriting chops – see the vocal loops and experimental sounds of early hit “Red Sun”, or the electronic pop sweeps ofBirdsong”. It’s the startlingReasons that pricks these ears up, a tremblingly emotive tale of heartbreak thrown into sharp focus by her sensationally stripped vocal performance and parred back instrumentation that swells in the final minute as if punctuate the hurt.

Becky’s made a lovely DIY video for the “Reasons” track on her Anatomy EP. It follows the story of two brothers, one of them is a bit of a loser so it’s a proper tear-jerker. It’s set in a rough working mens’ pub in Saint Saviour’s home town (Stockton on Tees), and in her mate’s council house. Becky features as a club singer in the pub.

God is in the TV is an online music and culture fanzine founded in Cardiff by the editor Bill Cummings in 2003. GIITTV Bill has developed the site with the aid of a team of sub-editors and writers from across Britain, covering a wide range of music from unsigned and independent artists to major releases.