22-year-old British musician Isaac Gracie has the world at his feet. Growing up in Ealing, the son of poet, Judith Gracie, Isaac wrote his first songs at the age of fourteen. Inspired by familiar greats in the Buckleys, Radiohead, Leonard Cohen, and Bob Dylan, Isaac had an instinctive knack for writing a devastating melody, and a voice honed to precision.
Studying English Literature and Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, Isaac uploaded a self-produced Garageband demo to BBC Introducing in the Summer of 2015. The song in question was called ‘Last Words’, a dusty lament aided by the crackle and hiss of inexperience, and over a million plays later, its creator’s journey is about to get started. The track was picked up by the likes of Huw Stephens, Annie Mac, Zane Lowe and John Kennedy, and a slew of intro pieces in publications followed.
The years of choral practice instilled into that voice from an early age as a young member of Ealing’s Abbey Choir, resonates here with anxiety and wit. Never too much, never too forced. There’s emotion without the emoting. It’s the sound of a young artist with talent still raw, but what a talent it is.
Since the Autumn of 2015, Isaac has become streetwise with support tours alongside Blaenavon, The Japanese House and Michael Kiwanuka, and effortlessly sold out a headline show at The Waiting Room, as well as playing various venues across the UK. Following an acclaimed spot at BBC Introducing’s SXSW showcase in Texas, he has also appeared at Glastonbury, Latitude and The Great Escape. 2016 saw two low-key releases; Songs From My bedroom, a self-produced bedroom demo EP, and Songs in Black and White, recorded live from the packed out Waiting Room gig in the high summer.
2017 marks the beginning of Isaac as a recorded artist. He has spent the last few months writing his debut album and recording it in the studio – his first foray into this space – and enlisted the help of some friends to round out the sound. ‘Darling I’m Not OK’ is the first glimpse into the next chapter of Isaac’s well-crafted songs, more of which will follow over the coming months.
Isaac Gracie Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter
Isacc Gracie plays The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham on Wed 29th March 2017. Tickets available here.
Listen to ‘Terrified’ below: