Through many years of finely tuning her skills in various studios, Micci Lou (aka SGC) began her electro pop solo project (She's Got Claws) in 2011.
Her self titled album is a brilliant introduction to her songwriting. Beautifully written, arranged, produced, programmed and engineered by her fair hands in her own bedroom studio.
Her influences echo throughout of Ladytron, Hurts, Massive Attack, Gary Numan and Air. Every song working it's way steathily and irrevocably under your skin, full of hook laden sonic richness. The poignant lyrics are all autobiographical, taking you on a stunning journey that will make your soul quiver.
"I write from the heart, with the strong aim of creating emotion with machines, and i know i have done this as many people who have heard my music have burst into tears of joy and release, as the songs bring forth emotions that they have buried deep."
The opener to her album is the dreamy song 'Forbidden'. It's gorgeous satin melancholy washes over you hypnotically, urging you to close your eyes and float to a world of calm. "This song is about when you turn the lights out to sleep and you close your eyes to float away to a perfect world with the one you want to be with and wishing that reality could be like this"
The two songs that follow, 'Fake and 'Blind', are altogether more mechanical rhythmically. Blind in particular is like listening to Kraftwerk after they've pumped iron in the gym. "My intention was to express my relationship with my mother. She expresses mainly from her head and i'm more emotionally driven, so this is me calling out to her and hoping that one day she may listen and express her heart to me instead."
I can imagine these two songs live, instantly getting audiences up on their feet in seconds, and what a vocalist to front it!
With her closing song, 'Dreams in Cold Storage', her influences of Air and Gary Numan-esque keyboard work comes into play. This is a fitting end to a roller coaster of emotions driven through the machine.