Aisha Vaughan believes in connection between all things. “Our planet and everything in it including ourselves is special and sacred. I think we forget that sometimes,” she explains. The Welsh musician has an undeniable bond with the natural world; she sees herself as part of the whole and her music incorporates field recordings of it around her. Her voice and instrumentation blends with the sound of birdsong, the rustle of trees in the wind, and the vibrant hum of nature. At times it can feel like Vaughan is trying to lock into the key signature of the universe so as to play along with it.
On her new mini-album, Water World, Vaughan’s focus is narrowed that little more, (unsurprisingly) taking inspiration from the aquatic world around her. “I’ve always been fascinated with water,” Vaughan notes in the record’s press release. “Generally, visually, audibly and chemically. We only exist because of water (among other things), and when I sit and watch a body or water, I think about how fundamental it is to life itself.” Water World uses what sounds like gurgling rivers and streams as its backbone; the album’s final track ends on a minute of flowing water and chirping wildlife. Before she arrived and after she is gone, the water will keep moving. All Vaughan can do is try to lock in with it.
The water adds a welcome and fitting texture to Vaughan’s music. Her wispy, often ethereal voice glides about it, like soft breezes cascading over a brook (and still evoking Julianna Barwick). Synths, flutes, and harp add to the texture, creating music that is undeniably pretty to take in. “The Water” has Vaughan’s voice swaying between stereo channels as synths dot about and sparkle, creating a luxuriant and warm aura. “Cascade” begins underwater and conjures a dreamy and soft feel while “Frozen” matches its title with chilly synth arpeggios rippling and dripping like ice thawing in the morning sun. On opening track “Changing With You”, Vaughan even gives way to a thunderstorm, the patter of rainfall adding a nebulous texture and offering an enticing and alluring entry point into the record.
And if Water World is anything, then it’s a series of doors in which to enter into Vaughan’s musical world. All six tracks here are undeniably lovely, a deliberate sanctuary for both the listeners and Vaughan herself (she grew up in a household where music was banned and uses composition to unpack that trauma). It hardly reinvents the genre but as a series of entry points there’s little to nitpick; like with much of her work (including 2024’s The Gate), press play on anything here and you’ll soon know if this is your kind of thing. There’s some surprise in how encompassing and full the sound can be too, given the foundation in natural ASMR sounds. It’s a shame then that Vaughan doesn’t give herself more room to explore and really, well, get deep in the water.
There are hints at it, which help Water World from teetering into being too one-tone. “Dark Forest”, with its wooden chimes gently clattering in the breeze and low vibrating synth notes, teases a different hue. Meanwhile “Dreams In The Rain” feels that little more alien compared to other tracks, a sense of drama and tension lurking in the undulating rumble of the track’s low end. The stray synth squiggles appearing randomly like fish surfacing and then jolting away also adds a welcome playfulness to the darker edge. More would have been welcome, but they are small excursions in what is a relatively small document, a conceptual mini-album working around a particular theme. Water World is another example of Vaughan connecting with the world around her, harmonising with and slipping into the flow and rhythm of the water.
