Holly Macve performed at St. David’s Historic Sanctuary at SXSW Friday night. She is an Ireland-born solo artist who first released music in 2017. After a nearly three year hiatus, she returned with her new EP, Time is Forever, in early February of this year. Macve was previously known as a folk-country artist, but this new EP is the start of a new era of music for her. Time is Forever has a more alt-pop sound than her previous music, and one song on the EP even features Lana Del Rey.
Before her own set, Macve joined the previous artist, Laura-Mary Carter, on stage. Carter is a close friend of Macve’s, and together they sounded heavenly. When it came to Macve’s set, it was clear that her voice was angelic and very fitting for the church setting she was in.
Her keyboard and guitar playing was beautiful and truly added to the ethereal feeling of her performance. It was the small details that made the set so amazing, along with my favorite detail that most people might not have noticed, which was the bow wrapped around the microphone. These small details made the set feel dream-like.
At one point in the set, Macve mentioned her “Texas mom,” who lives in Austin and takes her in every time she visits the area. She stated that she was, in fact, in the audience, and then went into a very emotional song: “Daddy’s Gone,” which is about how she lost her father. Macve’s final song was by far her most popular, being “Suburban House,” which features Lana Del Rey. It felt as if she poured her heart out into this final song, and her stage presence during this song was undeniably lovely and strong.
If you’re looking for a few new and beautiful songs to add to your playlist, you should definitely check out Holly Macve’s latest EP, Time is Forever.
