From The Valley
Ilsey- No California
- Rattle My Heart
- On Wrong Side (with Bon Iver)
- Yellow Roses
- Everything I Want
- Someone Else
- Heart of Gold (with Bon Iver)
- Overcome
- Catch Fire
- Down To The Bone
In June, Ilsey announced her debut album From The Valley, set for release on October 6th. The news arrived alongside the release of her first-ever original single “No California,” a 1970s-inspired track about a once-idyllic place turned sour, which UPROXX praised for its “folksy, carefree energy.” She also announced her signing to Elektra, which was shared exclusively by Variety.
Earlier this summer, Ilsey shared “Heart of Gold (with Bon Iver),” a hazy, evocative cover of the classic Neil Young song produced, mixed, and engineered by acclaimed producer BJ Burton [Bon Iver, Soccer Mommy, Low]. The track arrived to critical acclaim from Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, The FADER, Stereogum, Spin and more, with Billboard raving, “…there’s a fullness to Ilsey’s rendition — and with the slightly faster pacing, the ongoing search for that illusive heart of gold sounds more urgent than before.” The track marked the second collaboration between Ilsey and Bon Iver – the artist also contributed feature vocals to Big Red Machine’s single “Mimi” in 2021 (the collaborative project of Justin Vernon + The National’s Aaron Dessner).
With acclaimed producer BJ Burton at the helm [Bon Iver, Soccer Mommy, Low], and additional production and co-writing from Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, From The Valley touches on love, longing and heartbreak, exploring what it means to escape, and the inexorable feeling of needing to leave where you are to find yourself. Ilsey narrates each of the album’s 10 tracks with deliberate care across breezy Laurel Canyon rock and sparse pop ballads, thanks to a tender, empathetic voice full of hard-fought wisdom.
Born and raised in the shadow of Laurel Canyon, Ilsey grew up surrounded by music. She honed her songwriting ear listening to Motown and bands like The Beatles and The Pretenders, but also began to explore the music of Laurel Canyon, like Eagles, Joni Mitchell and Fleetwood Mac. As a teenager, she found herself gravitating toward songwriters like Nick Drake and Ben Harper and learned how to sing harmonies listening to Patty Griffin. After writing songs alone in her bedroom at age 15, she has since made her mark as a 2x GRAMMY-nominated songwriter, writing for the likes of Miley Cyrus, Kacey Musgraves, The 1975, Shawn Mendes, Panic! At The Disco and more.