gothic folk cellist baeilou creates haunting worlds on ep ‘inside under’

I don’t want to spoil the best part of Baeilou’s stunning “Eleanora,” except to say it’s one of the most surprising and beautiful songs I’ve ever heard. Over lush cello accompaniment, the singer-songwriter summons stunning and haunting gothic folk, with each title helpfully pointing to its inspiration, from “a non-fiction book about citrus” to “global warming.”
It’s like an old book coyly announcing “in which the hero learns a secret” beneath each chapter heading. She circles around stories in her songs, implying much, and declaring little, creating a constant sense of enveloping curiosity. As if beneath the cello plucks and wails, there’s the truth of the matter.
“Nothing is ever as it seems,” she sings on “Oranges,” nothing, especially not Inside Under. But at least for Baeilou, that uncertainty is what makes it so enticing.

Photo by Cinque Mubarak