Ma Polaine

‘Pop-folk-blues-Americana’ vocal and guitar duo

Although they have been described variously over the years – with references to Billie Holiday, Tom Waits and a “moody Mary Margaret O’Hara” – Ma Polaine’s sound is very much their own.
MOJO magazine said they “have evolved a pop-folk-blues-Americana style that is warmly familiar, yet is sufficiently unhinged to keep you guessing”.

Beth’s effortlessly distinctive vocals and evocative lyrics, coupled with Clinton’s understated guitar, underpin each and every song.

Ma Polaine have always taken inspiration from the curious, and their latest album City of Love is no exception. The track Paris Is Burning was inspired by Dorian Corey, a trans woman and drag artist, who starred in a documentary of the same name. Following Corey’s death, the mummified remains of a man were found in her closet (the exact circumstances of which have never been found out), and the band knew immediately that the story would become the basis of a song – not about the body in the closet, but a celebration of being able to express yourself in any way you choose and the freedom to be whoever you are.

The lead track ‘Morphine’ is brilliantly described by the band as “What Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds was for LSD, this one is for childbirth” and has already racked up airplay on 6 Music and Cerys Matthew’s Radio 2 Blues Show.

Reviews of City of Love:

MOJO Magazine – 4 stars. “Ma Polaine’s Great Decline have evolved a pop-folk-blues-americana style that is warmly familiar, yet is sufficiently unhinged to keep you guessing…”

Morning Star – 5 stars. “Packer’s voice has a superb range, but it is her interpretative skill that entrances, with the effortless shifts that imbue her evocative lyrics with rare emotional charge”.

Folk Radio UK – “..an album to be cherished, replete with enchanting musical treats around every corner”.

Blues Matters – “This is 21st-century music chock full of mystery and acute observation”.

Want to listen before you buy? Go to https://youtu.be/ujASSnHyKco