Paris-based singer/songwriter Mackenzie Leighton is continuously churning out soft and subtle folk tunes. She is a well traveled individual, born in San Diego, grew up in Maine and studied in New York. Leighton has now settled in Paris and it’s safe to say that she has picked up plenty of stories to tell along the way. Her musical arrangements are focused heavily on her crisp and pitch-perfect folk-y vocals. The voice is the main event in each of her early tunes with sparse instrumentation in accompaniment. The simplicity of her tunes is what stands out for me.
All The Women is a wonderfully chilled out track taken from her debut self titled EP back in 2017. Just a voice, some plucky acoustic strings and a tiny spot of piano – this is the type of coffee shop music I utterly adore. I get shades of early solo Nathaniel Rateliff off this one. Not many people can really make an impact when the backing band is stripped away. It’s always the test of an artist’s vocal ability to hold a room without a blaring backing band. Mackenzie has one of these infectiously beautiful singing tones. A very accomplished artist that certainly passes the test!
After All
Another extremely melancholic release was After All which surfaced late last year. It’s a quaint little LoFi indie tune with shimmering electric guitar riffs and a bouncy bass line. When I heard the tune first, I instantly sort of fell for it. Once again, it is totally chilled out as it meanders along quietly. A perfect soundscape to accompany a long, slow walk on the beach in the sunshine.
Leighton is the latest ‘Introducing’ artist featured on The Sound Sniffer and follows Holly Redford Jones onto the site this week. Two fantastic female vocalists with stand-out talent. Mackenzie has just released a new tune called ‘Ladies Night‘ this weekend. It is a little more ambient than the tunes above but also showcases her languid style.
News:
The next interview will be up on the site on Monday – it is a chat I had with an up and coming producer called Baiyou last month. I’m also very excited to share an interview with Jackson Mathod on the site the following week. He is a London based act who performed on the mainstage of Glastonbury with Stormzy and is one of Jordan Rakei‘s touring band members. He will be releasing his debut single ‘The Park‘ in a fortnight’s time. It is EPIC!!!
About ‘The Sound Sniffer’
The Sound Sniffer is a music blog which is still only a baby – Founded and run by Kevin Coakley in early 2019. He is a music writer and ghostwriter. ‘The Sound Sniffer’ also runs gigs and showcases in London since Oct 2019. The showcases are picked from artists we find in our submissions inbox.
Check out my Interviews HERE
Leave a Reply