Maria Wilman – ‘Dark Horse’

Maria Wilman has a history of doing the unexpected, of transforming in ways guided by a trust in her own potential and strength. It’s a trait that the London-based singer/songwriter explores with candidness and depth on Dark Horse, produced by Colin Elliot (Richard Hawley, Slow Club) that offers a first taste of a much larger body of work written between 2019 and 2022.

Sparked by an offhand comment by a friend, Dark Horse finds Wilman interrogating the idea of what it means for a side of us to appear as if from nowhere. What are we leaving behind there? What is the bereavement, the life already lived? What are the possibilities? Wilman knows the answers are hardly ever static. We never stop moving through our losses, even when the losses are pieces of ourselves.

There’s a lived-in quality to Wilman’s songs, born in ’69, which bristle with the kind of archetypal rock ‘n’ roll swagger that made The Pretenders so compelling and a dramatic flair and retro-pop edge that brings to mind the work of Nicole Atkins and A Girl Called Eddy. But Wilman is not rooted wholly in the past. There’s an urgency in her songs that begs the question, what’s next? And a further question: what is going to last?

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Raised in the Basque country, Wilman grew up during the politically charged and controversial Franco years. Bilingual and bicultural from a young age, Wilman eventually made the decision to cross the channel for good. Having graduated in psychology, her first job was working on NHS hospital wards. “I chose psychology because I felt like learning to understand how people think and feel would equip me well for later, for understanding the plot of a story, the motivations of a character.”

Wilman didn’t suppress her creative ambitions completely, but it wasn’t until recently that she realised a natural outlet had been staring her in the face the whole time: music. The lightning bolt hit in 2019, when Wilman turned 50. Entering a new decade created a sense of urgency. “It was always a matter of when I was going to make the jump,” she says. “I knew it wasn’t going to be never, but at the same time I felt that the train was already passing by and that I didn’t have much to lose.” Before long, Wilman had three albums under her belt, starting with Dark Horse. 

If there’s a common thread between all these songs, it’s Wilman’s willingness to cross-examine the unknown – to draw out both its darkness and its joy. Focus single “Full Circle” showcases the artist’s obsession with time, emphasising how life is never linear. Touching on both the scientific and spiritual side of our existence and how they blend together, Wilman explores the importance of love. The artist shares, “Sometimes we write songs that echo back a message we didn’t quite get at the beginning. It repeats itself like a mantra. Love was there from the beginning, spinning in an ever ending eternal sequence, interrelating everything. As you keep trusting your heart…”

“Lovegrass” narrates the story of another woman named Maria Wilman who was a true inspiration and pioneer of her times. Despite living in different decades, 100 years apart, the musician describes how their lives seem to intertwine, paying homage to who the original Maria Wilman was and the incredible journey her life took her on. 

“Mastermind” asks if it’s all by design, while “Roll Your Soul” revels in the ambiguity of avoidance, the ways in which we miss the mark on purpose. Intentions of another type are found on “Through Your Eyes”, which yearns for the end of self-condemnation. “Sometimes we see others with greater compassion than the one we grant ourselves,” explains Wilman, aware that it’s women who bear most of the harm.

In an ideal world, making a fresh start after 50 wouldn’t be remarkable. But we are where we are, and Wilman’s coming out as a musician is also her coming home. “I think I always knew, deep down, that I would end up returning to what I knew was true,” she says. “I knew I would end up aligning my life with my deepest intention, with where my heart has always been.”

“I think time is irrelevant in the process. It doesn’t matter whether you arrive when you’re in your 20s or your 50s, as long as you get there,” she says, and a playful smile crosses her face. “Maybe where I’m heading is not necessarily the end. The idea of a finish line is just what keeps us going.”

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