Sophia Stephens takes you through her life like a David Fincher feature would. It is up close and personal, yet is in ties with harmony and melody like a marriage. You’ll feel what she feels, hear what affects and inspires her. Each song has something of matter to hear and feel from. This is her EP, Remnantal. 

I would assume she is talking about the feelings and memories left behind. The remnants, the grey matter. With a song like Shadowlit, you can feel this sensitive bracket that she is within. The gentle strumming with her soft vocals and threaded piano accents come together brilliantly. To appreciate the weight of the lyrics, she chooses silence to really grasp the atmosphere. You could feel the tension, the truth and the process of emoting all cascading into one stellar piece. The vocal range is effectively captured, as she shows her dynamic spectrum in the chorus. 

The EP continues with Submerge. A piano based track, the opening is the dramatic sequitur to the next scene. Strings accent the melodies and transcending emotions they connect to. Sophia Stephens showcases the raw power of her voice as well in this song. With her lyrics, she is truly submerged, processing it all through her well crafted music. 

Writing through a memory

As we reach Never Spoke, you feel the minimal air of music take over. The drums and guitar accompany Sophia Stephens, as the harmonics creep in during the verse. It is exactly what the song requires, in terms of feel and setting the scene. The result is a powerful face to face with the shadow in the dark. Familiar creates the melancholy, subversive weather that makes for a rousing song. It is the absorption of character, of being an elemental necessity with memory. Sophia Stephensmakes this song her journey to change, and we get to witness it. 

For a 17-year-old musician, Sophia brings immense maturity and understanding to her music. It is well crafted, healing and most importantly a chapter as a singer-songwriter that may define her sound. Through this album, you can see a wordsmith emerge from the embers of a new fire.

I would feature this in Celeste & Jesse Forever (2012). Other than being a well written film, it would feature these songs in many of the scenes. You can even listen to Sophia’s single from 2021 called Don’t Say Goodbye. Listen to her album with the links above and follow her for more!