Ailsa Tully – Parasite : Listen

Let Ailsa Tully’s latest single, “Parasite,” be a warning. The biting song faces power dynamics and imbalances within the music industry head-on, and Ailsa’s voice makes it clear she isn’t one to be crossed.

Ailsa unites the world of her Welsh choral music heritage with field recordings and folk. Her work echoes the experimentation of Julianna Barwick but carries the huge heart of songwriters like Rozi Plain. Writing her first songs on the cello, Tully soon graduated to the bass guitar, that early classical technique ensuring she developed a bass playing style unlike anyone else. Add her tender, elegant vocals to the mix plus her obsession for field recordings and you’ll begin to understand what makes Tully so different.

Based upon her personal experiences in the music industry, ‘Parasite’ is a highly charged sermon on navigating a toxic work relationship and gender power dynamics.

Initially Tully plays the role of how she is perceived by this person – a feminine product to mould, shape and design. As tension builds in the song, her vocals remain fragile and sweet, maintaining the illusion of her female tranquillity, until finally the heaviness of her emotions erupt, breaking the illusion once and for all. ‘Parasite’ is a compelling blend of grunge and choral folk.

“Parasite is a confrontational song written for a controlling and manipulative person. It explores the insidious manner in which sexism takes form, particularly within the inner workings of the music industry”.

The song is out today via Dalliance Recordings. Get it on Bandcamp.