With an approach that's intricate and quietly off-center, U.K. alt-folk musician
Rozi Plain emerged with her solo debut, Inside Over Here, in 2008. Over the course of the next decade, she expanded her intimate electro-acoustic sound while touring with artists including
Devendra Banhart,
James Yorkston, and
This Is the Kit. Collaborators on her fourth LP, 2019's
What a Boost, included, among others,
Sam Amidon,
Chris Cohen, and
sir Was.
Originally from Winchester in Hampshire, Rosalind Leyden was 16 when her brother Sam (aka Romanhead) took over the open-mike night at a local pub and encouraged her to perform. Her first album as
Rozi Plain, 2008's Inside Over Here, was recorded partly in Winchester with her brother and partly in Scotland with Fence Records founder Kenny Anderson (aka
King Creosote). By the time of its release,
Plain had relocated to Bristol to study art. While there, she co-founded the Cleaner Records collective with Sam and musicians including singer/songwriter
Rachael Dadd and
François Marry (
François & the Atlas Mountains). Around that time, she also began collaborating with
Kate Stables of
This Is the Kit. Featuring nearly a dozen guests, including
Dadd and
Stables,
Plain's second album, Joined Sometimes Unjoined, arrived in 2012 via Fence and Talitres Records.
Plain then moved base to London, though she spent more and more time on the road, both solo and with various bands. Her third album,
Friend, included performances by
Hot Chip's
Alexis Taylor and members of
François & the Atlas Mountains. It arrived in 2015 on Lost Map Records. A set of remixes and outtakes called
Friend of a Friend followed a year later.
Plain put finishing touches on the songs for her next album while touring the world on bass for This Is the Kit. Co-produced by
This Is the Kit's
Jamie Whitby Coles,
What a Boost was released by Memphis Industries in 2019. ~ Marcy Donelson