Laura Marling’s no longer playing house. On 2020’s ‘Song For Our Daughter’, the singer-songwriter made the transition into starkly sparse arrangements as she wrote guidance for a fictional daughter. Its follow up, ‘Patterns In Repeat’ follows its title’s lead — delving into motherhood again, but for real this time. Despite pulling zero punches, it still offers the warmth of a winter morning’s freshly roasted coffee.
‘Patterns In Repeat’ is a document of the unpredictable emotions that come with the unpredictable patterns of parenthood. Opener Child Of Mine is a cosy fireplace, kindled by hearty choral harmonies, nimble guitar, and autumnal field recordings — the chatter of adults, the gurgling of toddlers, the sounds of domestic bliss. Like the 10 tracks that follow, it unfurls at its own pace.
Listening to ‘Patterns In Repeat’ is to be welcomed into Marling’s home. Recorded largely in her own studio, and co-produced with Dom Monks (Big Thief, Billie Marten), it’s a family affair.
Looking Back’s Leonard Cohen-evoking poetics were penned by Marling’s father five decades prior, the title track’s spectral harmonies are voiced by her boyfriend, and her daughter Maudie’s phonetics can be traced throughout. This lends the album a subtle magic that less mature songwriters would struggle to muster.
Marling’s love of folksy melancholia remains, marrying the earnest poetry of Townes Van Zandt with the haunting deliveries of Patsy Cline (No One’s Gonna Love You Like I Can, The Shadows). However, like a kids playing with toy blocks, ‘Patterns In Repeat’ is also evidence that parenthood has helped Marling find her inner child.
Interlude (Time Passages) finds her messing about with mellotrons and string machines, fumbling around for what fits her new-found freedom of expression. Caroline’s “la la la, something something” chorus is so unconventionally simplistic and playful, you can’t help but soak up the youthful exuberance. Just as becoming a mother unlocks a new identity to walk around in, it has unveiled a fresh new canvas for Marling to paint upon. ‘Patterns In Repeat’ is another masterpiece.
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