Jerskin Fendrix – Beth’s Farm

Jerskin Fendrix delivers ‘Beth’s Farm’, a track that opens doors to memory with the kind of precision reserved for handling fragile artifacts. The song serves as a gateway to Once Upon A Time… In Shropshire, arriving October 10th via untitled (recs) – an album described as “10 Folk Songs about Life & Death in the Countryside.”

Written during what Fendrix calls “a period of sudden and unrelated deaths,” the project threads together memories of vibrant rural childhood while grappling with how time and loss alter everything. “A friend, family members, animals, and eventually my father” – death accumulated until “the entire dream was shattered.” What began as love letter to Shropshire became testament to corruption.

‘Beth’s Farm’ opens with choral echoes supporting his singular voice, building toward tinkling bells and classical string arrangements. The track maintains delicately charming space while exploring themes of innocence and fatality. Over synthesized and off-kilter vocal arrangements, Fendrix recalls youth spent learning about the world through young romances, music, and natural landscape.

The album promises folkier territory than his 2020 debut Winterreise, though experimental flourishes remain. Previous singles ‘SK1’ and ‘Jerskin Fendrix Freestyle’ wildly contrast with ‘Beth’s Farm’ in tone and instrumentation – the former sketched around foreboding basslines, the latter a riotous post-punk anthem.

His Hollywood detour proves relevant here. After Yorgos Lanthimos discovered Winterreise and tapped him to score Poor Things, Fendrix earned Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations. The cinematic work informed his approach to the new album, where he imagines himself as different characters – younger self, friends, family, even death itself.