In a world of dazzling polish and curated existences, something like Eleanor's "Copper" suddenly takes on a raw human openness. The neo-soul/folk hybrid is the standout gem from her debut EP, "There's No Quiet, There's Little Relief," a project built on years of inner conflict, late-night overthinking, and that ever-familiar ache of growing pains.
One of the standout features of "Copper" is its ability to strike an effortless balance between softness and strength. Based on Eleanor's signature folk-tinged songwriting, the neo-soul production subtly raises the emotional stakes, enveloping it in feel-good textures but never overshadowing her openness. You can feel that this song started with someone alone in a room, probably scribbled into a notebook while someone noodled on acoustic chords. However, Eleanor managed, with the help of her trusted production collaborators, to let it evolve without losing its soul.
Written during one of her darkest times, while wrapping up her university studies, "Copper" embodies the all-too-relatable cycle of personal comparison and self-doubt. There's a bravery to the way Eleanor presents herself here, looking back on past hardships not in polished, victorious retrospect, but as the moments as they lived and breathed, even now cutting a little. It's that straightforwardness that contributes to making "Copper" resonate so deeply with humanity. It brings you into the storm.
Eleanor has called her EP "dramatic, messy, and self-involved in the best way." And indeed, "Copper" is all of this. But it's also tender, introspective, and restorative. It is her letter to her former self, written in sympathy, not judgment. "Copper" is a manifesto. It introduces Eleanor not just as a singer-songwriter, but as a storyteller willing to reveal the parts of herself that aren't always polished. And in the process, she has fashioned something golden of her own. In "Copper," Eleanor enables us to experience her journey.
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