When you’ve got a voice like Hayley Johnson’s, you had better do something with it. I don’t mean pursue a singing career; I mean pursue a career that counts. Thompson, performing under the name The Little Miss, is doing just that. On her new EP American Dream (released in August), The Little Miss interrogates the mythos that surrounds Americana.
The Little Miss’ singing invokes power pop singers like Florence Welch but the earthy acoustic guitars and lonesome whistling keep us tethered to this mortal plane. The title track, “American Dream,” sets the tone. The Little Miss invokes common symbols of American culture — blue jeans, cherry pie — to list all of the things we love but concludes that list with the thing we need: freedom. This sensibility carries through in “A Ride Along the Mountain Valley” and “Red, White, & True”: the music invokes simpler times, but it also questions if those times were truly so simple. American Dream is a reminder that political music doesn’t have to be angry or pointed: it just needs to hit home by being as direct as possible. Above all else, American Dream, is a beautiful album with important songwriting — and the Little Miss is only going to fly higher.
The Little Miss — Official, Facebook, Purchase on iTunes
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