I'll Stop When I'm Done.  [CD]

Eera - I'll Stop When I'm Done.  [CD]

Berlin-based singer EERA returns with her third LP, produced by Grizzly Bear's Chris Taylor and featuring her strongest and most assured set of songs yet. ‘I’ll stop when I’m done.’ also marks the first non-PSB release for Public Service Broadcasting’s Test Card Recordings label. Titled after a Marilyn Monroe quote, "I won’t stop when I’m tired, I’ll stop when I’m done", the album interweaves the intimate and personal with broader reflections, and emerges as a studied celebration of the female experience. Sparks of inspiration for the album began with viewings of old black-and-white films, which led EERA to dive deeper into the lives of the female film stars she encountered there. From Shirley Maclaine in ‘The Apartment’ to Marilyn Monroe in ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’, the artist felt drawn to these icons and began researching their work and lives. “It felt as though I was having this conversation with these women in a dialogue that made me realise a lot about myself.” This research surfaces in tracks such as ‘Honey, do you see me?’ and 'I’ll stop when I’m done'. The title track inspired by the Monroe quote begins with illusions of grandeur and, by the end, “breaks down into the lyric ‘I just want to find someone to love’. It’s telling yourself that you want one thing, then asking yourself: is it, really?” Here, the concept of a female muse is neither passive nor impenetrable. EERA frames her desires and vulnerability, which feel both achingly human and part of the rich, messy tapestry of womanhood. 1. Celebrate 2. Forget her 3. Talking 4. Honey, do you see me 5. Joy 6. Bad guys 7. I’ll stop when I’m done 8. Photograph 9. For me 10. To be brave