Marissa Nadler and Milky Burgess – The Bloody Gardener Review

What does Marissa Nadler and Milky Burgess sound like?

Ghostly country and southern folk ballads, heavy with atmosphere.

The review of ‘The Bloody Gardener’ by Marissa Nadler and Milky Burgess

With Marissa Nadler teasing a new album is on the way soon, the dark and damp Southern folk rock songstress has a short EP based around an intriguing theme. Marissa recorded three classic murder ballads for the audiobook version of Katy Horan’s newly released Murder Ballads: Illustrated Lyrics and Lore.

The book discusses true and fictional stories behind twenty traditional murder ballads, exploring the beauty and horror of the art form through stories, lyrics, and original illustrations. Marissa took a stripped-back approach for this release, bringing in Milky Burgess to play the guitar. Milky’s dusty strumming and picking are the spine of the music, giving the songs a distinctive, lost and lonely country feel. Marissa then douses her vocals in an ethereal reverb and haunts the tracks with minimal atmospherics hanging around her ghostly voice.

‘Omie Wise’ is the Cowboy track, as it has the brightest performance from Nadler and Burgess. With its quicker pace and wider dynamics, it is the most accessible track on the EP. Milky even gets a solo between the body count. ‘The Bloody Gardener’ feels more like a gothic-tinged Johnny Cash track. It is rooted in traditional chords, yet Nadler’s witchy and soft vocal performance turns a mournful song into a haunted one. ‘Bo Lamkin’ adds in some bass notes and waning sitar-like hue to the waltzing harmony. This song is closer to a nursery rhyme in structure and poetic nature. It sounds calming and sweet, until you realise what the lyrics are about. Sometimes the most horrific stories are delivered with the softest of blows, and this is one of them.

The ethereal and rustic combo works a treat for this three-track release. The concept of murder ballads isn’t something I’m clued up on, but the traditional lyrics don’t hold back. Between the killings and bodies floating down the river, we get more poetic ideas of love with roses and cribs. The reinterpretations from Marissa Nadler are strong and defined in their minimalistic approach, too. Much more than this, and they’d risk taking away from the old-time history we’re passing on. Brief, but well worth the listen for gothic folk fans.

Recommended track: Omie Wise

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