With a ringing endorsement from Sir Elton John—“beautiful record, beautiful songs”—GIA FORD has released her debut album, TRANSPARENT THINGS. Recorded in Los Angeles at the renowned Sound City Studios with legendary producer Tony Berg (Phoebe Bridgers’ Stranger in the Alps and Punisher), TRANSPARENT THINGS is an immersive collection that showcases the British singer and songwriter’s ability to craft songs like no other artist of her generation. Listen to the album, released September 13 via Chrysalis Records, here.
Support for the album in the UK and Europe has been notably strong, with acclaim from media outlets including Rolling Stone UK, The Independent, NME and more. Here’s a sampling of the initial reviews:
“This sense of expansiveness and space permeates the whole of debut album Transparent Things, which feels like the true arrival of a British songwriter seizing her moment.”
–Rolling Stone UK (6 albums you need to hear this week)
“a ponderous art rock tapestry of tragic, sinister and wondrous figures – many of them all three at once.”
–NME
“[it] showcases her Americana-tinged storytelling…”
–The Independent
“…a shining example of the driving force behind the creation of Ford’s stunning debut–the desire to tell the stories of misunderstood or marginalised characters.”
–The Skinny
“Gia Ford’s debut record is a triumph of perseverance, of artistic integrity, and of what can happen when you stick to your guns.”
–The Line of Best Fit (7/10 Review)
“An extraordinary album…The new promise of English music moves with absolute freedom between dream pop and dark. ‘Alligator’ and ‘Paint Me Like a Woman’ stand out at the peaks of a hypnotic and overwhelming tracklist, destined to spark conversation. So much talent, but also a surprising maturity.”
–Classic Rock Italia (80/100 Review)
“Gia Ford’s melodic folk-pop and indie rock sounds hopeful and confident.”
–Brigitte (Germany)
For GIA, the figures on the fringes of society are by far the most fascinating. Her songs tell the stories of the downtrodden to the downright dangerous. And through them, we begin to hear familiar, uncomfortable truths about ourselves. The theme of alienation runs through the album.
“Most of the characters in these songs are outcasts, all with unique ways of feeling on the periphery, somehow,” GIA says. While each song operates in its own realm, their subject matters create a throughline of eccentricity that turns TRANSPARENT THINGS into an odyssey of outcasts.
Arguably no song better encapsulates the character of “the other” than the single “Paint Me Like a Woman.’” The song is from the perspective of a woman who feels herself morphing into the villain as a result of abuse and mistreatment at the hands of all the men in her life.
GIA explains: “It is a look inside her mind as she feels herself drifting away from who she really is; allowing her rage to weave itself into the fabric of her being. It’s a comment on how we hurt each other, how we change each other, and a question: who gets punished for this terrible nature we have all, to varying degrees, embodied?”
Listen to “Paint Me Like A Woman” here and watch the video here.
Connect with Gia Ford:
Website | Instagram | TikTok | X | Spotify | YouTube | OpenStage
