It may surprise no one that after being thoroughly wowed by her at the Loud & Clear pop up gig on Saturday 31st May, our album of the month could not be anything other than Pearl Charles upcoming release Desert Queen. That this European edition has been put out by our friends at Last Night From Glasgow, known for their high quality pressings of hard to get pieces, only makes us more enthusiastic.
For those of you who don't know her, Pearl is, in her own words, a southern California gal, but one who has toured here often enough to think of the UK (and Scotland especially) as a "much wetter second home".
Consistent with her other work, Pearl refuses to be limited to a single genre, the album spans Santana-esque riffs, euphoric melodies ABBA would be proud of, electro-funk and a healthy dose of blues-rock and psychedelia.
Starting with the pulsatingly energetic Does This Song Sound Familiar?, we are then thrown into an ode to LA with City Lights, before taking a step back in time to the 70s with the extremely laid back horns and strings of Step Too Far.
Then come my personal favourites, the most pop-y track on the album, the euphoric Middle of the Night and the atmospheric and dreamy Just What It Is, with a central lyrical hook so perfectly simple (Its not something you did / You were only a kid) that we can't believe no one has come up with it before.
Needless to say Pearl commands a mesmerising voice, an ear for melody and beautiful timing. Shades of Stevie Nicks and Karen Carpenter flow through the record, while comparisons to the genre fluidity of June Carter and Lana Del Rey rightly abound.
The B side is rounded out with the dreamy, seemingly-Paul Simon inspired Smoke In The Limousine and the extremely funky bonus track You Know It Ain't Right.
Despite all these competing influences, each song still feels like a unique creation. That really is part of the joy of the album, it is bursting with ideas and incredible variety, which could very easily have become a mess, but thanks to the quality of the songs and skillful arrangment, it remains thoroughly enjoyable. Credit must also go here to the beautiful mix by collaborator Michael Rault in Joshua Tree, perfectly balancing the vocals and instrumentals.
So, if you want to hear something new, by an artist you likely haven't heard before we would wholeheartedly recommend Desert Queen. It perhaps also helps that, having met her in person, she is a warm, lovely person, who really deserves to have her music heard!
This Limited Pearl White Edition of the album, with bonus track, is available to buy now: click here.
Jamie, June 2025
