Melbourne-based singer-songwriter Shani Weiss offers a heartfelt exploration of human connection on her EP All About Life, a six-track folk-rock collection reflecting on relationships with family, partners, and friends. Across lush piano, twangy guitars, and soaring vocals, Weiss balances vulnerability and strength, capturing both the challenges and joys of everyday life.
Lush piano and twangy guitars open “All About Life” with an inviting charm, establishing a Monday morning introspection and a “something’s gotta change” aspiration for betterment. “Getting older is no fun, but I guess that we’re all in this boat,” her vocals continue, delighting in their ensuing perspectives of what really matters in life: spending time with family, making others love, and living life with an appreciation for the present moment. The ensuing “In Two” succeeds in a lusher folk-forward realm, weaving serenely wordless vocals and trickling acoustics within lyrical acknowledgements of “being stronger this time” — though still feeling at a crossroads; its dreamy outro is especially memorable.
A chamber-folk entrancement then takes hold on “Rules Don’t Apply,” where ruminations on forever-lingering memories coincide with heartfelt strings, twinkling piano, and Weiss’ powerful vocal dynamics. “What’s Left” conveys personal strife in accounts of a “rock in my throat” and “a little future I am responsible for” — exuding sentiments of parenthood and brightening the lives of others, within a series of jangly guitar entries and harmonious vocal backings.
“Breathe” excels thereafter in its pain-dissipating piano balladry, reassuring and warm in its delivery, while EP finale “Feel Alright” struts a playful buoyancy in celebrating the myriad of feelings within the ride we all call life, even in the presence of certain people “that sometimes make me wanna turn the volume down.” All About Life is an affecting, strongly relatable charmer of an EP from Shani Weiss.
