Discover Apryll Aileen’s pop-soul ode to repentance.
Apryll Aileen – ‘Wicked Ways’
‘All the blood on my hands, and still on my mind’, opens ‘Wicked Ways’ by Apryll Aileen. A haunting line that might bring murder to mind – but as far as I can tell, the blood mentioned here is entirely metaphorical. This is a song dedicated to repentance, regretting past wrongs and asking for forgiveness – perhaps unusual for a pop song, but sincere nonetheless.
Apryll Aileen is an alt-pop singer-songwriter hailing from Canada. Originally classically trained, her style combines multiple influences from pop to RnB to electro, and has led her to perform worldwide.
‘Wicked Ways’ is a mid-tempo pop-soul track heavy with guilt and repentance, yet still maintaining a touch of the epic.
Aileen shows a nice turn of phrase in her confessional lyrics with lines like ‘I got mine, and then I got even when I should have turned my cheek’. Though never specific, it seems to tell the tale of past hurts and ‘grieving my pain’ and lashing out in response, then regretting it. Aileen addresses an unknown listener with the memorable chorus, ‘Forgive my darkness, forgive my shadows, forgive my wicked ways’. The melodies are well crafted, and delivered in Aileen’s strong and gutsy vocals with a soulful twang to them.
The production centres around a simple, looping acoustic guitar line, backed up by haunting synths and bringing in stomping, clapping beats and tambourine for the sing-along chorus. It’s simple but backs up the stripped-back honesty of the track well. Fans of raw-vocal led female artists like Paloma Faith, Emeli Sande and Florence Welch will find something to enjoy here.
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Words Eden Tredwell
