Jenina MacGillivray’s “Ilia” showcases the holy trio required of her genre: a striking voice, stellar lyrics, and a distinct approach to the guitar.

Just, take a minute. Click play, and just listen to this song. Its lines say more than single lines should be able to. This is accessible poetry, and it takes an already great song to new heights. A barebones song like this requires a few traits to avoid blah territory. This song has all those traits. Poetry, authenticity, effortless vocals, pull; all propped up on some guitar you haven’t quite heard 100 times.

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“The album has a lot of references in it to people in my life,” she says.

“This track is a bit of a love letter to my friend Ilia Nicoll. She wrote a song about me a few years ago, when she was moving from St. John’s to Toronto, and it made me cry because I knew I was going to miss her so much. Ilia just has a way of bringing magic to the everyday, choosing a sweater, washing a cup.”

“She’s a kick ass musician, and she makes these amazing dolls and she’s doing a PhD in linguistics. When she was home in the summer she played violin on her song, and her brother Jake is on drums. He also produced the album. I’m really blessed to have so many wonderful friends. It makes life good.”

MacGillivray will launch Marion November 3rd at The Ship at 9pm. $10. She’ll also be playing 1pm at Fred’s on the 3rd.

The album features other well-known musician like Jake Nicoll, Darren Browne, Ilia Nicoll, Amy Nicoll, Maria Peddle, and Kira Sheppard. Album Art: Jane Brokenshire; design by Krista Power.