An Easy Escape – Shelley Segal

Despite having just released her 3rd studio album, ‘An Easy Escape’ Shelley Segal still enjoys singing with her father’s wedding band. That’s just the sort of person that she is. If the head full of dreadlocks and acoustic guitar of the folk singer from Melbourne weren’t some sort of clue, her songwriting makes it clear that she takes a fairly philosophical approach to life.

Her first album, ‘An Atheist Album’ is a passionate response to dogmatic belief, inequality, religious oppression and the idea that only the devout can be grateful and good. Segal relishes her ability to use songwriting and music to explore issues of importance to her. The record gives a voice to the often underrepresented views of non-religious people, the fastest growing minority in many countries. After performing at the 2012 ‘Reason Rally’ to a crowd of 25,000 in Washington DC, Segal’s music video for her single ‘Saved’ has gone global and has seen her playing and speaking on these issues throughout England and America.

There’s a lot of talk surrounding Shelley Segal’s new song ‘Morocco’ from ‘An Easy Escape’. Shooting the video over a two day period in the country, Segal flew over from London (while recording her new album) with her team – a production company consisting of a director and cameraman. The song was inspired by a trip made to Morocco in 2007 with friends and filmed in Marrakech and Essaouira. Lines such as “Rasta do you want to go fly in the sky/Rasta don’t you want to get high and watch all your worries and troubles pass you by” proved controversial. Sadly the song has been blasted in the Moroccan press and attacked in social media for criticising the country and “denouncing the kingdom”.

Unfazed by the attacks, Segal’s album was launched on May the 30th and is this week’s album of the week here at Eastside. With its smart songwriting and cool indie folk vibe, An Easy Escape is definitely worth a listen and hopefully you’ll find yourself drifting along in Segal’s rippling wavy sounds.