British soul singer Tawiah has collaborated with writer and artist Al Moore to produce the captivating Ertha, a concept album based on Moore’s poetry and set to Tawiah’s music. Moore’s writing spans the human experience with pieces titled ‘Birth’, ‘Child’, ‘Youth’, ‘Adult’, ‘Elder’, and ‘Death’ – broken up with interludes from the ‘Universe’. Produced in her home studio during the pandemic, Tawiah describes the creative process as ‘liberating‘. She continues: “I see now that, like Ertha, getting lost is what gives us the strength of character we need to find, and be, who we really are.” I can’t claim to have fully processed the scope and complexity of this project, but it truly stirs with trembling choral vocals, spectral production, and Tawiah’s conversational lilt. Like many concept albums, it is best enjoyed as one continuous listen, but the highlights within include the pillowy homage to motherhood on ‘Birth’, the oppressive refrain of ‘what have we done?’ on ‘Adult’, and the haunting a cappella which begins ‘Death’.