SINGLE REVIEW: AMBER SAQLADI - LIQUOR

Here at #TEAMw21 we always seek to bring you tomorrow's star today, and despite having probably only been in their orbit for about an hour in two years, we have absolutely no hesitation recommending Amber Saqladi once again. We first became aware of her prior to Long Road 2023, she was buried deep in the bill, on a stage that started at 10:30. yet our pre festival research suggested that she was far better than that, as she would duly prove. She then disappeared under our radar until Buckle & Boots 2025 where her set was nothing short of stunning, quite unlike anything else across the whole weekend, she seemed to push genre boundaries in sound and lyrical content in a way that made her a compelling watch. In the intervening years she has not added to her recorded output which currently stands at 3 songs - until now!

"Liquor" was one of the songs played at Buckle & Boots, and was trailed as being a forthcoming single and it is everything that we hoped for and more. With the lyrics now clear to match the crisp sound, the full majesty of Amber's vision is revealed. It feels like there are enough ideas going on to fill about five singles, which is exactly what made Amber so addictive in the first place,

The principle is straight forward enough, falling in love can be like getting drunk, you can become intoxicated but that simple premise alone does not do the contents of this song justice - It may start as an acoustic guitar, with a splash of pedal steel, and the occasional piano chord, but just envisage that as being the ride to the top of the roller coaster. Buckle up for the ride is about to begin!

"I've been down this road before

You know my body like it's yours

I never thought that I would spend my sunsets looking in your eyes

This type of incandescent love

Wouldn't suit anyone but us

I tailored my soul to yours

And you wear it like it was made of gold"

I let the light, open my eyes, now I'm blind to all except for you"

There's a rich original poetic nature to Amber's lyrics, at times sensual, while repeated use of "Eye" related imagery or the close proximity of the words "Suit" and "Tailored" cannot be coincidental.

In the meantime the sound of percussion has got progressively louder until it all but thunders as it takes us into the chorus

The chorus is a another burst of invention, the sound is dominated by two sounds, the pounding drum beat and Amber's exquisite vocals that embody this bewildered state. There's a contrast between the certainty of her feelings in the first half of the chorus and the need to be reassured that the feeling is reciprocated in the second half

"You're the liquor on my tongue

As I'm coming undone

This kind of love, is a war that ain't won

But it's keeping me strong

And warms me up, when I'm alone

You're the liquor in my blood

It's hard to trust, this game of love or lust

But we can't stop

So tell me I'm the one, that warms you up, when you're alone

You're the liquor for my soul"

The second verse, loosely pulls in biblical imagery, the original lovers

"This time I know how it'll be

You'll grow a garden around me

We'll walk through autumn leaves

Not truly knowing what it means to fall

The repeat visit to the chorus sees Amber unleash a variety of backing vocals as compelling as the lead ones, it becomes a marvellous challenge as you try to follow and absorb everything hitting you

As the second chorus fades, it seems that the song has completed, and if it had what a breathtakingly brilliant single it would still have been - however Amber has other ideas ( plenty of them ) and it then almost drifts into a completely song altogether - think Paul McCartney's interlude in "A Day In The Life". There is a new percussive rhythm and Amber fires out the vocals with an insistent urgency

"I was on the passenger side - trying to keep my heart busy

To find your head on my thigh and you said I looked pretty

And now we're Bonnie and Clyde

Gonna tear down this city, till there's only us only us"

The final visit to the chorus finds time to incorporate some strings in an epic soundscape before everything then fades

The closing lines are just Amber and a piano, that in some ways, separated from the chaos, allows Amber's voice to be truly appreciated.

This time "Liquor" truly is over, the three and half minute assault on your senses finally comes to an end. It's a perfect storm of lyrics, sound, performance and production that is quite unlike anything you'll hear all year. Amber Saqladi is an artist truly deserving your attention, and this is just the start, the Buckle & Boots set contained more songs that are undoubtedly going to be equally jaw dropping. For now we'll just settle back and enjoy "Liquor" and hope that it is not another year before the next installment in Ambers career is revealed, for we here at #TEAMw21 are totally intoxicated!