The trio brings together singer and guitarist Elena Tonra, guitarist Igor Haefeli and drummer Remi Aguilella. Each part matters to the atmosphere. Tonra gives the songs their close, vulnerable centre; the guitars create depth around her; and the drums decide when that private feeling needs to move. The arrangements leave room for small sounds to have a large effect.

“Youth” is a natural place to begin. There is a restless force underneath its delicacy, and the song gains power as the playing becomes more insistent. Its appeal comes from the way tenderness and frustration occupy the same space. It can feel restrained and urgent at once, which is a difficult balance to achieve without making either quality seem artificial.

“Smother” approaches that emotional territory more quietly. The voice sits close to the listener and the surrounding sound seems to hold its breath. Daughter understand how much tension an arrangement can contain before it needs to break open. The silences matter, and the music becomes more involving when you give those silences the same attention as the words.

Their 2013 debut, If You Leave, is a strong introduction to that world. Not to Disappear, released in 2016, broadens the sound, while Stereo Mind Game, from 2023, offers another perspective on the band’s emotional range. These records are worth approaching as complete albums: the shifting atmosphere between songs helps each individual moment settle into place.

“Doing the Right Thing” is another useful starting point for the patient side of their writing. Daughter rarely rush to explain away an uncomfortable feeling. They allow it to remain complicated, supported by repeating musical figures and gradual changes in the arrangement. That patience gives their songs a particular kind of honesty: the emotion is allowed to exist before anyone tries to solve it.

There is a limit to how much of this mood some listeners will want in one sitting. The darker passages can become heavy, especially if you are looking for quick energy or an easy lift. But give Daughter a little uninterrupted time and the subtle differences begin to reveal themselves. For The Fat Llama, their music works best when the room is quiet enough to notice how carefully it has been built.