If you were to tell someone in, oh let’s say 1995, that Britpop would be kaput and West End British folk would be on top of the world nearly 20 years later, many people would have laugh and likely think that you should be institutionalized. Yet here we are in 2013 and all things folk, especially from England, are the rage. There’s Jake Bugg, Mumford and Sons, Noah and the Whale, and of course, Laura Marling.

She was born in 1990 in near by Hampshire to parents who were respectively a music teacher and recording studio owner. It was in the aforementioned studio where her father first played folk music for her, and provided the foundation from which she’s built her sound. At the age of 16, where she met like-minded musicians and whether they knew it or not, these folkies ended up being at the heart of the nu-folk movement, which started towards the end of the last decade.

Marling was an original member of Noah and the Whale, but left in 2008. She also appeared on tracks from bands like The Rakes and Mystery Jakes during this time. But Marling cut her teeth touring with the likes of Jamie T., Adam Green and the Moldy Peaches and slowly built a following. Touring brought attention to her albums Alas, I Cannot Swim and I Speak Because I Can, both were nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2008 and 2010 respectively.

The singer is known her for songwriting prowess, especially lyrically, which are more powerful and polished for someone as young as she. While her lyrics aren’t directly personal in the past she’s dated the singers of contemporaries Noah and the Whale (and is one of the reasons why she left the band) and Mumford and Sons. But instead of writing a full-blown break up song or album, what separates Marling is her ability to be tactful and extremely poetic when referring to her personal life. One really needs to focus and carefully read between the lines in order to decipher the real meanings behind her lyrics. That in itself is the hallmark of a terrific songwriter.

Her latest album, Once I Was an Eagle, appears to be the album that finally propels the 23-year-old singer to a larger audience. Sure, it helps that she recently moved to Los Angeles, but this is debatably her strongest album to date. Our review of Once I Was an Eagle will come soon, but judging by her recent show in Seattle, the skies are blues for Laura Marling. Hop on her bandwagon before it’s too late.

Photo by Brigit Anderson