Surprise albums usually come with a rollout—some cryptic social media posts, a countdown clock, maybe even an elaborate ARG if an artist is feeling ambitious. Laura Marling? She just decided to release Song for Our Daughter because, well, why not?
“This whole decision-making process happened in less than 10 days,” she tells me. “I saw no reason to hold back on something that’s done, especially considering we might not be leaving our houses for a while.”
That was 2020, a year when “waiting for the right moment” suddenly felt obsolete. But even without the pandemic reshuffling the industry’s norms, this record feels particularly urgent. It’s not that Song for Our Daughter is a “pandemic album” in any way—it was completed well before lockdowns began. But in many ways, it does feel like a guidebook for uncertain times.
The album marks a shift in Marling’s songwriting approach. She’d always been known for her introspective, poetic lyricism, but this time, she was pushing herself to write “beyond her edges.” “There was a real emphasis on the rhythm of lyrics,” she explains. She credits British theatre director Robert Icke with inspiring that approach, having observed his process of rewriting scripts and refining dialogue. “The way words are structured can sucker punch you if you get it right,” she says.
Another key influence? Psychoanalysis. She had been studying for her master’s degree in the field, and while she insists it didn’t directly shape the songs, it did help her understand the layers beneath them. “It’s something I apply in retrospect,” she says. “Not that I would recommend analyzing my songs, but it’s an interesting cultural perspective to have, especially now.”
Marling also found inspiration in other works of art, using some songs as responses to novels, films, and other music. The End of the Affair (named after the Graham Greene novel) and Alexandra (a reply to Leonard Cohen’s Alexandra Leaving) are both examples. “There are so many women in literature and film who exist as projections,” she says. “I wanted to explore what it means to be on the receiving end of that kind of passion. What happens to these women beyond the facade that’s projected onto them?”
Even sonically, the album takes some unexpected turns. Take Strange Girl, for example, possibly the most upbeat and rhythmic track she’s ever recorded. “I didn’t intend for it to be that way—it just happened,” she laughs. “Maybe I’m getting soft in my old age.” She cites Paul Simon’s Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard as a reference point for its bouncy, carefree energy—an unusual but welcome addition to her catalog.
That phrase—old age—is relative, of course, but turning 30 has made Marling more reflective, particularly about the role of songwriting in passing down wisdom. In the album’s press release, she spoke about “arming the next generation,” equipping younger women with the knowledge and self-awareness to navigate a world that often demands their silence.
“I look at 16-year-olds now, and I’m astonished by how young they are,” she says. “I think about what I would have liked to know at that age—what was acceptable to protect yourself with, what boundaries you were allowed to enforce.”
And while she acknowledges that feminism is hardly a new conversation, she does believe something has shifted in the last five years. “There are people just a few years younger than me who seem to have been born into a half-step generation—one that’s more ready to call [expletive] on things that need to be called out. That’s inspiring to me.”
The result is an album that feels timeless yet immediate. Marling has always been an artist who honors tradition while subtly bending it to her will, but on Song for Our Daughter, she refines that balance to near perfection.
And she’s not slowing down anytime soon. When I ask about new projects, she confirms that a second album from her side project LUMP (with Mike Lindsay of Tunng) is already finished and awaiting release. “It’s done,” she says. “We recorded it the same way as the first—he writes all the music, and I come in and improvise the vocals. It’s a very quick, instinctual process.”
With a stunning solo album in the world and another LUMP record on the way, Marling continues to prove why she’s one of the most consistently fascinating songwriters of her generation. Whether she’s pulling from literature, psychoanalysis, or her own experiences, there’s always something quietly revolutionary about the way she assembles a song—like she’s crafting blueprints for future generations to build upon.
Listen to the interview above and then check out the video below.
