August 12 - Hayley Ross & Maia Eden

“I have my vision. I put my stamp on it. It can’t be any other way.” Hayley Ross is an outlier, a one-off, a self-starter and quiet disruptor who refuses to be pinned down.

Hayley’s dark and dreamy cinematic lo-fi creations also have one toe tentatively dipped in alt roots. This landscape consists of listening, writing, & playing the necessary instruments to carve out her own musical space.

Hayley’s beautifully sparse, home-recorded demo of “Fierce Love” landed on the doorstep of Independent label, Barracuda recordings, which in turn led to a record deal with the Brighton based label. She released two EPs ‘Fierce Love’ and ‘Barracuda’ before releasing her debut album ‘The Weight Of Hope’ in February 2020 co-produced with Martyn Barker, mixed by John Leckie (Stone Roses, Radiohead) and mastered at Abbey Road studios. 

High points in her career so far have included air time on Lauren Laverne’s BBC6 music show, BBC Introducing the South and a number of her songs successfully synced on popular TV shows in the US including Orange Is The New Black, The Blacklist & Riverdale.

She has played extensively in the UK and toured Ireland with varying versions of her live show.

Hayley has previously worked with Alain Whyte (Morrissey) and with Nick Cave & Warren Ellis singing on the original motion picture soundtrack for Wind River.

Ever since she was a young lass growing up in the Scottish highlands, music has been (Hilltop Sessions co-founder) Maia Eden's love and refuge.  

After a successful spell session singing in the 1990’s, song writing became a nightly routine as a single mother after putting her daughters to bed, developing the personal, confessional style that has become her trademark. But it took a few years for her to see herself as a solo performer, having started her performing career in bands including In Bob We Trust and Edenwood, the popular Lewes duo known for their striking harmonies.

Her personal lyrics about life and love bring Jackson Browne to mind, while her unique voice is reminiscent of Natalie Merchant and K.D. Lang. 

Her EP, 'New Horizons' is firmly establishing her as an exciting new voice in the indie-folk scene.