Singer/Songwriter Abi Tapia, producer Chris Gage and MoonHouse Records announce the release of Abi Tapia's “The Beauty in the Ruin”.
Austinites Abi Tapia and Chris Gage joined forces in 2005 when Gage produced her sophomore effort – “One Foot Out The Door”. The CD spent time in the Top 40 on the Americana chart and established Abi as a bright new talent on the Austin, Texas music scene. The CD was recorded at MoonHouse Studio, Gage’s south Austin studio that he co-owns with partner Christine Albert (Albert and Gage), and the couple got to know Abi well, becoming strong supporters behind the scenes. When Abi returned to Chris to handle the production on her third album the partnership deepened, eventually leading to a licensing agreement for the new album with Albert and Gage’s MoonHouse Records. In the middle of the recording of “The Beauty in the Ruin”, MoonHouse Studio moved to a commercial location and the project was put on hold for six months while remodeling took place. Abi’s music christened the new space.
Tapia’s songwriting and voice are stronger than ever and the CD showcases her knack with a hook and ability to universalize her experience. “The Beauty in the Ruin” explores sadness and frustration, but is never maudlin and is always hopeful. In “The Easy Way”, she flirts with the idea of willingly sinking into depression; “My Miner” explores the helplessness of loving someone who works a dangerous job; and “Beware” lists the endless dangers facing Americans, especially a woman traveling the highways alone. But when it came time to name the album, she found there was a common thread of hope, redemption, and joy in all of these supposedly sad songs. “The beauty in the ruin” is a lyric from “Flying,” mostly written on an airplane over Louisiana, looking down at the complex relationship between ecology and manmade infrastructure, which from 30,000 feet she found awe-inspiring.
The music straddles country, folk, and rock with ease, incorporating fiddle and pedal steel as well as some crunchy electric guitars and big drums. Chris Gage enlisted Austin studio veteran Glenn Fukunaga to play bass and Bruce Logan to fill the drum throne. Gage’s musical versatility is showcased throughout on keyboards, guitar, Dobro, mandolin and percussion, while fiddler Eleanor Whitmore and pedal steel master Buzz Evans sweeten the mix. Background vocals are shared by Abi, Christine Albert, Chris Gage and Bill Small (Walt Wilkins and the Mystiqueros).
"Beauty In The Ruin" available here.
www.abitapia.com
www.moonhouserecords.com
Ad Vanderveen
Ad Vanderveen is a singer/songwriter and guitarist whose star has been rising over the European and American musical landscape throughout the past decade. Although born a Dutchman (Hilversum, 1956), half of his family are Canadian and that may be one of the reasons why his music is firmly rooted in a style nowadays known as Americana.
His early musical influences were 60s Rock & Roll bands and the classic singer/songwriters from the 70s. Vanderveen played guitar and wrote songs from age 14 and played in many R & R bands before founding his own band Personnel in the early 80s. After 2 LP's the band recorded "Personnel Only", their breakthrough CD, for Polydor Records. The follow-up album "Continuing Stories", recorded in Nashville and produced by Bill Halverson, featured guest appearances by Al Kooper, Flaco Jiminez, Al Perkins and Leland Sklar.
Ad decided to leave the band to focus on his work as a solo artist in the early 90s. Since then Vanderveen has produced an impressive body of work, consisting of 11 solo cd's and several side projects, like with his garage band "The O'Neils" and with Eliza Gilkyson and Iain Matthews in "More Than A Song".
Ad Vanderveen's music is often described as colorful and rich in dynamics, ranging from intimate acoustic to full on electric improvisation. His highly acclaimed records and excellent reputation as a live performer are spreading, both in the old world and the new.
"Still Now" available here.
The Adrienne Hindmarsh Trio
Singer and jazz organist Adrienne Hindmarsh is a truly unique talent on today’s music scene. With today’s musicians learning jazz within the classroom, it has become an exception rather than the rule for a musician develop and learn “on the road”, playing clubs and festivals and touring.
Born in New Zealand into a musical family, Adrienne acquired her first organ in 2003 when she imported a Hammond C3 from Canada and with no jazz organ players in her country, she taught herself to play by copying recordings by Jimmy Smith, Joey DeFrancesco, Groove Holmes and Jack McDuff. After performed clubs and festivals throughout New Zealand and Australia, Adrienne moved to the USA in 2009.
During a year spent in the Midwest, performing at Hammond organ summits, club gigs and jam sessions in Cincinnati, Detroit, Dayton and Columbus, Adrienne further developed her sound on the bandstand. It was during this time Adrienne noticed she was the only female instrumentalist on the bandstand, and it wasn’t until she moved to New York she found other strong female performers on the scene.
Now based in New York, where she is actively performs throughout the city, Adrienne continues to thrive with her originality and talent. She has CD's released on HMV in Japan and on Ode Records in New Zealand, and her latest CD release “Blues Skies” is set to be a runaway success.
Adrienne has shared the stage with Joey Defrancesco, Bruce Forman, Victor Jones, Tony Monaco, and and headlined at jazz clubs including Cliff Bells (Detroit), The Blue Wisp (Cincinnati) and Jazz Central (Dayton Ohio), and performed in New York clubs including Minton's, The Garage and the Iridium (as a special guest with Joey Defrancesco).
www.adriennehindmarsh.com
www.myspace.com/adriennehindmarsh
Aggieland
Aggieland is the musical landscape where, by way of their melodious contemplating songs guitar player Stephan Jankowski and singer songwriter Aggie de Kruijf - from The Netherlands - speak their minds. You’ll find clear traces of part singing American folk and country in Aggie’s crystal clear vocals, telling stories that focus on life’s small drama’s and impressions, and how they may affect you. Blues, soul and funk were Stephan’s musical habitat of years as one can hear in his intense and groovy guitar accompaniment.
On ‘Heading For The Sun’ their brand new album (on ICUB4T Records) catchy African percussion accompanies the Euro-American roots songs.
Aggieland was voted Best Band of The Netherlands in the 2006 United Nations MusicAid contest with the song 'Working Wonders' from their debut album ‘Welcome to Aggieland’.
www.aggieland.nl
www.myspace.com/aggielandmusic
Albert & Gage
MoonHouse Records is proud to announce the release of "Albert & Gage – Dakota Lullaby (The Songs of Tom Peterson)". This is the sixth CD for the Austin, Texas duo since teaming up in 1997. Christine Albert and Chris Gage will be continuing their active performing schedule throughout the summer to support the release.
Although Albert and Gage are prolific songwriters, for this project they drew entirely from an extensive catalog of undiscovered gems written by Gage’s old friend from Sioux Falls, South Dakota – Tom Peterson. Virtually unknown outside of South Dakota (although he is somewhat of a legend among his peers in the Midwest), Peterson lived for awhile in Nashville but his songs never found the wider audience they deserve. On the liner notes Gage says “I’ve been singing Tom Peterson songs on stages around the world since 1975, but I had to hear 10,000 other songs before I realized just how great Tom’s are.” And Christine mentions that listening to old recordings of Tom’s music made her feel like she had “just struck gold in the Black Hills”. You can hear the affection and reverence that Albert and Gage have for the songs and for Mr. Peterson himself. Tom Peterson makes his home in Sioux Falls and works in production for a local television news program.
Gage’s multi-instrumental chops are well known through his work as a producer and a sideman (Roy Clark, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Jerry Jeff Walker) and he guides a world class band through classic Americana style arrangements on Dakota Lullaby. He shines on guitars, piano, organ, and dobro and that distinctive Albert and Gage harmony is prominently featured throughout. The duo take turns singing lead and you can almost hear the prairie wind as they wrap their voices around the ballads, the blues, the country, swing and bluegrass that grace this album. The music is pure Americana and Albert and Gage deliver it with the integrity and care that these great songs deserve.
Austin’s studio A-list, Paul Pearcy, David Carroll and Glenn Fukunaga, make up the rhythm section and are joined here by other hot Austin players - Lloyd Maines on pedal steel, John Mills on saxophone and Michael Austin on clarinet. Chris and Christine took advantage of borderless digital technology and added Canadian Mike Stevens on harmonica and South Dakotans Kenny Putnam on fiddle and Boyd Bristow on harmony vocals.
Al Rose
Somehow you got here and now you're checking things out and you find yourself wondering (maybe to yourself) what is Al Rose's music like? What are Al Rose's songs like? Good questions.
Imagine (if you will) your favorite café. Maybe it's Kopi Café on Clark Street in Chicago, or some place in Paris, or Rome, or Bali, or New York or some out of the way place in your head. It's late afternoon… or morning (if you've just gotten up). Either way, it's still a touch lighter outside than inside. You step in and your eyes adjust to the warm colors. Some of the tables are worn wood. Some are worn marble. All of the chairs are different and somewhat solid, but you have your favorites and you grab a seat.
Over by the wall, Bob Dylan is playing scrabble with either Allen Ginsberg or Serge Gainsbourg. It's tough to tell because bartender Richard Thompson makes sure to pour a shot of absinthe into every drink. Groucho Marx is over in the corner, chair back on two legs, playing ukulele and swapping songs with William Burroughs in a scene out of a Chagall painting. Henry Miller sits at a table littered with empty glasses and full ashtrays. Lucinda Williams sits on his lap, while under the table he tries, unsuccessfully to work his hand up Emmylou Harris's dress.
Neil Young sits at a table by himself eating popcorn and watching a movie that's playing in his head. While from the outside front window, Greg Brown looks in taking notes and sketching pictures.
Any other questions?
Ali Eskandarian
Ali Eskandarian’s transnational upbringing makes him a prescient voice for our era. The Iranian-American troubadour draws upon influences as discrete as American folk, rock and traditional Persian music to craft songs about love, travel, politics and loneliness. The results have earned him comparisons to greats like Bob Dylan and Jeff Buckley.
Ali was born in Pensacola, FL, on September 11, 1978, to a father who was an officer in the Iranian Air Force. Growing up in Tehran, Iran during the Iranian Revolution, Ali found strength in music. “I was always around music,” he explains. “It’s hard to find an Iranian party without dancing and singing. The Islamic revolution has not been successful in trying to stop people from having a good time.” After the death of Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989, the family was granted political asylum in Germany. After two years, they relocated to Dallas, Texas, where Ali experienced an arts-filled adolescence. After attending college in Plano, Ali moved to New York in 2003 to pursue his dream. He said, “I eventually realized how much music meant to me and that I could be a musician.”
Buzz has built around Ali’s live performances, which include shows at the Living Room, the Rockwood Music Hall and a summer residency at Washington, D.C.’s the Red and the Black. Ali’s highly anticipated debut album, "Nothing To Say", is slated for a late 2008 release on Wildflower Records. Produced by Rob Friedman, whose work was featured on Dan Zane’s Grammy-winning album "Catch That Train!", "Nothing To Say" exhibits diverse sources of musical inspiration. Standout track “Memphis” is motivated by the Americana of Willie Nelson, telling the story of a wanderer who is persistently drawn back to this mystical American city. Meanwhile, “Eastern Fancy” reveals the Persian influence of singers like Farhad and Dariush, with Ali’s powerfully austere voice front and center against an acoustic guitar background.
Ali’s intensely personal blend of East and West is an adventurous, politically compelling addition to the musical landscape of 2008/2009.
"Nothing To Say" available here.
www.myspace.com/alieskandarian
www.wildflowerrecords.com
All Day Sucker
Their time is now.
“As musicians, we use the framework of pop music aesthetics to make pop music wonderful, be it through song structure, melody or harmonies,” All Day Sucker singer Morty Coyle states. “We’ve been praying at the altar of pop music our entire lives. Now we’re ready to take our place in the church.”
All Day Sucker may be somewhat new to the music scene, having just released their second CD that’s brimming with heady, street-smart yet refreshingly sweet, sophisticated melodic rock. What gives their instantly memorable hooks a soulful resonance are sharp musicianship and a grounded lyrical sense that illuminates mature, authentic feelings.
This isn’t a group conceived in a flash-in-the pan marketing plan, or thrown together to appeal to someone’s idea of a target demographic. Core members singer Morty Coyle and keyboardist Jordan Summers started playing together in high school, fronting bands that cut its teeth in jazz, as well as pop, R&B, new wave and blues classics. While recording original material, they became an underground sensation, performing those jaw-dropping covers at Canter’s Kibbutz room open jam in Hollywood.
Eventually, Coyle and Summers decided to get serious with their music career and formed All Day Sucker — although they almost gave that name away. “During rehearsals, we realized that we didn’t have a name, then someone mentioned the Stevie Wonder song, ‘All Day Sucker,’ and we all thought it would be a great name for a band,” Summers recalls. “At the same time, we were friends with Maroon 5, who were originally known as Kara’s Flowers—but they didn’t like their name. We told them to use All Day Sucker, but they told us to use it. It went back and forth for a while until we settled on our respective names.”
With band name in hand, they continued to hone their original material, showcasing their improving musical chops and wizened lyrical perspective. “It was an evolutionary thing,” Summers says. “After listening too much to others early on, we decided to trust our own instincts, bringing in more of our personalities and presenting more rock-pop harmonies that people like to listen to.”
“The difference in our music is as stark as comparing a sandbox star with a professional athlete,” Coyle adds. “In our early songs, we were a force of adolescent hero worship. We were trying to be something that we wanted to be, not what we were. When we finally started All Day Sucker, we wanted to truly represent what we are.
Blessed with great songs, sharp chops, a cunning attitude and a mature sense of self, All Day Sucker is ready to venture into the seen-it-all music scene and emerge as a fresh, clever and unique musical presence. “Jordan and I have never been completely starry-eyed about this, as there always has been a certain level of understanding of what we were doing,” Coyle says. “Now we realize that it’s a much a folly for a 30-year-old to sing about hating his parents, as it is for a 16-year-old to explain what’s it’s like to live in real world. At a certain point in your creative life, you have to speak with your own voice. All Day Sucker has enabled us to find our voice.”
Allan Thomas
Allan Thomas' music, described by the artist himself as a modern amalgam of jazz, blues, R&B, and Latin, first gained attention in Hawaii when the well-known Beamer Brothers recorded his song "You Take my Breath Away" on their "Island Nights" album. The spotlight focused on his talents once again when Brian Kessler, now living in Oahu, wrote and produced the award-winning "Local Motion" jingles using Thomas as his lead singer.
In 1989, Allan Thomas contacted legendary producer Stephen Barncard and over the next few months they created the album 'The Island ". The record, which is released on Thomas' own label, Black Bamboo Recordings, is a collection of Thomas' original tunes written and recorded during 1989-1990.
Not surprisingly, much of the album draws its inspiration from the beauty and tranquility of the Hawaiian Islands, according to Thomas. "But," he quickly adds, "a number of the songs are concerned with other themes, like a world spinning out of control; steamy, secret affairs; windsurfing and visions of global brotherhood." The album features an impressive array of vocal, instrumental, and song writing talents provided by Thomas and his collaborators.
Asked to comment on "The Island", Thomas said, "It proves to me that if you have a vision and keep it near, you can make it real." He also notes that Donald Fagen and Walter Becker of Steely Dan expressed his feelings best in their song" Deacon Blue" when they sang:
"I cried when I wrote this song. Sue me if I play too long. This brother is free. I'll be what I want to be."
The album was dedicated to Thomas' late stepfather Carl Thomas who gave him early encouragement, and to the late Rhonda Lynn Jerald, his former spouse and dear friend who provided much inspiration for the music.
In 1996, Thomas continued his prolific songwriting on his second Black Bamboo CD, "Coconut Culture" (featuring, among others, Graham Nash on harmony vocals), which departed from the jazz-based format on the first CD, and leaned toward a more traditional feel reflecting his love for the indigenous music of his adopted islands.
His songs have been covered in Hawaii by The Hawaiian Style Band, The Beamer Brothers, and Norman 'Kaawa' Soloman, among others. In 1999 two of the songs from Coconut Culture ('I'll Find You Yet' and 'Ka Wai Aloha') we're used in a feature film called 'Beyond Paradise', produced out of LA and fimed on the big island of Hawaii.
He continues to play locally and also in Los Angeles, NYC, Toronto and other places in North America, and is just about to release his new CD ‘Making Up For Lost Time’, again exploring the world of altered tunings.
Allan can always be found surfing or windriding the waves on the North shore of Kauai and riding gain in his recording studio, producing, mixing or songwriting. And of course he's never too far from the water.
Allison Moorer
Allison Moorer is set to release her Ryko debut, 'Crows', on February 10, 2010. Produced by R.S. Field (Buddy Guy, John Mayall) at the House of David Studio in Nashville, TN, the 13-track album is a refined and lyrically honest collection of songs that is a marked stylistic departure from her previous work. 'Crows' is the anticipated follow up to her critically acclaimed 2008 album, 'Mockingbird', which was a celebration of songs composed by a stunning cast of female songwriters including Nina Simone, Patti Smith, Cat Power, her sister Shelby Lynne, and more. It also follows Moorer’s first Grammy Award Nomination for the song “Days Aren’t Long Enough,” a composition she co-wrote with her husband, Steve Earle, for his Grammy Award Winning 2007 album 'Washington Square Serenade'.
Speaking with Billboard Magazine regarding 'Crows', Moorer stated “I really just set myself free and just threw all the rules out the window.” Regarding the album’s title, Moorer offered “We have crows in the yard at our place up in Woodstock. I am a little obsessed with birds, and have been told that they are indeed our messengers from the other side. So I decided that instead of letting the crows make me uneasy, I would start to consider them as friendlies, and that they were actually bringing me a message of comfort.”
Ruby Marchand, head of A&R for Ryko, stated “Ryko is enormously proud to welcome Allison Moorer to our family of artists. Allison’s extraordinarily evocative songs and vocal style capture her unique signature in the singer/songwriter community. With the February 2010 release of 'Crows', Ryko celebrates the beginning of a worldwide relationship with Allison through an album of astonishing breadth and scope.”
Moorer’s 1998 song, “A Soft Place To Fall,” was included on the soundtrack to the feature film 'The Horse Whisperer', which led to an appearance in the film itself, as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song. The opportunity gained her worldwide attention and set the stage for her career. Since, Moorer has been featured on releases by Joan Baez, Kid Rock, Chieftains, and Los Straitjackets. She was seen in 2008 starring in 'Rebel Voices', a play based on Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove’s best-selling book Voices of a People’s History of the United States. The play combated hopelessness by igniting the forces responsible for arousing change and celebrating the indomitable human spirit. On December 13th, 2009, Moorer will be seen in 'The People Speak', a beautiful and moving film inspired by A People’s History of the United States, and Voices of A People’s History of the United States. The film, presented by The History Channel, also features Bob Dylan, Morgan Freeman, Bruce Springsteen, Danny Glover, Matt Damon, John Legend, Rosario Dawson, Josh Brolin, Benjamin Bratt and more.
Check out the brand new video of "The Broken Girl" right here.
www.allisonmoorer.com
www.myspace.com/allisonmoorer
Ally Kerr
One of Scotland’s fastest-rising songwriters returned to Japan in April 2008 for some acoustic shows – the third visit to play there in just four years. Ally Kerr’s success in Japan followed the release of his critically-acclaimed debut album 'Calling Out To You', much of which was written as Ally travelled between the East Coast of the USA and the West Coast of Scotland. It was subsequently self-funded and recorded on a shoestring budget back home in Scotland and was first released on tiny Japanese label Quince Records. Its inclusion in a major Japanese music magazine’s list of “Top 20 Albums Ever To Come Out Of Scotland”, was testament to the strength of the songs and the album happily sat alongside the seminal works of Orange Juice and Belle & Sebastian.
During his first-ever-headlining tour of Japan, Kerr received word that one of his songs was to feature as the theme tune to a major new Japanese animated TV series 'Mushishi', based on a hugely popular comic book. 'The Sore Feet Song' was released in Japan as a CD single and his fanbase in far-flung corners of the world is continually growing as a result of this exposure. New converts in the USA, South America and Europe have been eager to find out more. The series has been broadcast in several countries and was released on DVD in North America last year. A truly international artist, Kerr was also featured in the China Daily (the country’s biggest English newspaper) and has many fans across this country and also other parts of Asia. Second album - 'Off The Radar' - was licensed to Universal Records in the Philippines in late 2008. The singer/songwriter’s international profile rose another notch after he was selected to play at the North by North-East music festival – Canada’s biggest and most important music festival, rivalling South by South-West in Austin, Texas.
The home team finally took notice and 'Calling Out To You' received a full release on Neon Tetra Records in 2005. Although echoes of Belle & Sebastian, Big Star, Kings Of Convenience, Simon & Garfunkel and many other artists resonate, Kerr’s style is singularly distinctive. One of Scotland’s broadsheet newspapers - Scotland on Sunday - recognised him as “one of the most interesting and creative musicians working in the country right now” in its rundown of the “Hottest New Scottish Talent”. Melodious, heartfelt, beautiful, melancholic, and quirky are adjectives regularly used to describe his music. The release of the debut album followed the critical success of his limited edition debut EP, 'Midst Of The Storm', which was released on 7-inch white vinyl by cult Spanish label Elefant Records (Lambchop, Camera Obscura) and garnered airplay around the world. Kerr continues to receive regular press and radio support from top Spanish DJs and BBC Radio 1’s John Peel was one such DJ who championed Kerr’s very earliest work on his shows.
Self-effacing, yet single-minded and determined, Kerr released his second album 'Off The Radar' on Much Obliged Records and in Japan on the Ultra-Vybe label. This new collection of twelve songs has received glowing reviews, international airplay and continued ‘word of mouth’ support across the internet with many agreeing that this new album is a real step-up from the much-lauded debut. A tour of Germany was completed in September and Kerr will venture to other parts of Europe and Asia later this year.
www.myspace.com/allykerr
www.muchobligedrecords.com
Amchitka 1970
Greenpeace Canada is set to release an exclusive two-disc, re-mastered live recording of "Amchitka - The 1970 Concert That Launched Greenpeace", featuring Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and the late Phil Ochs. The concert, a fundraiser to protest U.S. nuclear bomb tests near Amchitka, Alaska sees a first-time release on 10 November. The CD is available exclusively through Greenpeace and all proceeds will benefit the organization.
“We are pleased to offer this musical slice of history to Greenpeace supporters and music lovers around the world,” said Bruce Cox, Greenpeace Canada’s executive director. “This CD is a piece of musical magic. It contains never before heard songs, duets and chatter that capture the confidence and hope of the times. It carries a timeless message that change is possible.” The concert, which took place at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, British Columbia on 16 October 1970, was organized by former trial lawyer and activist Irving Stowe. As co-director of the 'Don’t Make A Wave Committee', he raised enough money to send 11 peace activists by boat, christened The Greenpeace, to the Aleutian Island of Amchitka. The activists were unsuccessful in stopping the tests, but their voyage in 1971 marks the birth of the worldwide organization known today as Greenpeace.
“The Amchitka voyage would not have happened without the concert, and so we owe a debt of gratitude to Irving Stowe, and the talents of Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and Phil Ochs for generating the momentum that ultimately launched Greenpeace,” continued Cox. “The activists that traveled to Amchitka set the example that has guided and defined Greenpeace: non-violent direct action to protect our environment and motivate societal change.”
The upcoming release features concert performances by then-rising Canadian star Joni Mitchell and a 22-year old James Taylor. Protest singer, Phil Ochs kicks off the CD. Earlier that year Mitchell had been named Top Female Performer of 1970 by Melody Maker magazine and Taylor had released his major breakthrough album "Sweet Baby James".
Of the historic concert, Amchitka emcee and Canadian broadcaster, Terry David Mulligan says, “The crew of ‘The Greenpeace’ took hold of our hearts and minds and pulled all of us along. As always, music carried the day.”
Get the background to this amazing story, right here.
www.myspace.com/amchitka
www.twitter.com/amchitka1970
www.facebook.com/pages/Amchitka/60751539970
Amelia Curran
Amelia Curran is a seeker. Nearly a decade ago she left St John’s for Halifax, but still pines for Newfoundland every single day. With a number of East Coast Music Award nominations and an extensive discography, including: 'War Brides' (2006), 'Lullaby For Barflies' (2002), 'Trip Down Little Road' (2001) and 'Barricade' (2000), Curran knew it was finally time to make a record at home.
Over the past two years she recorded with Don Ellis in various caverns in St John’s, the city of legends, from the abandoned CBC building on Duckworth Street to an old farm house on the fringes of town. For Curran St John’s captures the essence of her inner huntress.
A songwriter by trade, but a writer at heart, Curran believes language is everything. She describes the craft of song-writing as an act of “expressing the inexpressible, a means of describing the indescribable”.
“Bye Bye Montreal” could pay homage to Leonard Cohen and the thriving arts scene of yesteryear, but that’s the beauty of Curran. She never explicitly says what her songs about. She just opens the door and allows room for various interpretations and relationships. “All Hands On A Grain Of Sand” speaks to Curran’s ability to elevate the lyrical into the poetical. Her desire to reconcile the past and move into the future is a constant struggle.
“Ah Me” manifests biblical myths into self-reflexive epiphanies, while “The Mistress” is part confession, part obsession. A narrative-driven internal contention of what it means to be the other woman. “Mad World, Outlive Me” mines for the truth and untouchable gems held deep within the soul. With splashes of folk and cabaret aesthetics, “The Company Store” wades through a lost way of life. “Julia” turns the page on a bleeding heart, while “Tiny Glass Houses” shatters expectations and rebuilds the broken places within us all. “The Dozens” is a toe-tapping rendition of harnessing one’s inner lover.
Retribution arrives in both “Love’s Lost Regard” and “Wrecking Ball”, but it’s the album’s closer, “Last Call” that leaves listeners thirsty for another round.
Amy Allison
"Sheffield Streets" marks the triumphant return of one of America’s singular songwriting voices.
Over a decade of performing and recording, Amy Allison’s unforgettable voice has drawn endless comparisons to a host of singers from Loretta Lynn to Billie Holiday.
Still, it is her tuneful, eloquent songcraft that continues to draw the strongest accolades from critics, fellow artists and devoted fans. Her body of song transcends genres and eras, melding traditions of old and new country, brill building pop, folk blues, show tunes and jazz standards. Her songs of love, longing, heartache and melancholy are at once sophisticated, heartfelt and instantly memorable.
Amy is the daughter of Mose Allison, renowned jazz musician and songwriter, and grew up on Long Island, a suburb of New York City.
The 11 original tunes on "Sheffield Streets" are the culmination of a lifetime of songwriting, and are arguably her best yet. With heart-tugging balladry, humor, and a down-but-not-out fortitude in the face of adversity, her style is at once nostalgic and contemporary, poetic and plain.
Producer Don Heffington (Bob Dylan, Lone Justice, etc) wisely puts Amy’s voice front and center, keeping the arrangements earthy, memorable and tailored to each song.
From the girl-group harmonies and pop verities of lead-off single “Why Must it Be?” to the strangely smouldering yet wistful ballad “Anywhere You Are”, Heffington’s vivid production colours Allison’s material perfectly.
The one non-original is a wry duet with long-time fan Elvis Costello on a cover of her father Mose Allison’s 1969 classic “Monsters of The Id” featuring a gorgeous solo by Mose.
www.amyallisonmusic.com
www.cdbaby.com/cd/amyallison5
www.myspace.com/amyallisonmusic
Amy Raasch
"She's got her own inner groove; nothing tentative about it. A force to be reckoned with.” - Don Was
Amy Raasch’s win in the 3rd Annual GINA/LAWIM Singer/Songwriter Contest for the Missing couldn’t come at a better time. She is just finishing up her debut album, which will feature her winning song, “Missing:” the story of a missing child told from the perspective of the child’s best friend. Likened to songwriting powerhouses Joni Mitchell, Ryan Adams, and Jane Siberry, her debut is an organic, intimate exploration of love versus independence.
"Her music is extremely inventive & narrative; it turns me on.”
- Michael Mollura, Music Connection
Every song is personal: it’s as if she crawls into the skin of the characters that speak through her songs. In fact, her first song was written in the voice of the character she played in feature film “the four corners of nowhere,” a Sundance pick soon to be released on DVD.
“Sophisticated, solid and comfortable like the seats of a Rolls Royce...Miss Raasch opens delicately for us the doors to her kingdom. One would have to be deaf -- and blind – to stay outside.” - Hector Zazou
Smoldering with breathy intensity one moment and exploding into full-voiced ecstasy the next, her dynamic live sound has lit up stages from Genghis Cohen, the Knitting Factory, Room 5, and Dragonfly to legendary NYC venues the Bitter End and CBGB’s. Following her acclaimed six-month residency at Tempest, she was named one of Music Connection’s "HOT 100 Unsigned Artists" for 2006.
"In a world full of derivative artists, she has a sound all her own."
- Paul Ill (Christina Aguilera, Linda Perry), Paul’s Pix, L.A.
Her distinctive guitar sound is based on open tunings of her own invention, and is complimented by an accomplished group of musicians. Drummer Dony Wynn (Robert Palmer) laid the foundation at Music Lane Studios (Sheryl Crow) in Austin, Texas. The production team included Austin-based producer Emile Millar (Kelly Dalton, Postfontaine, The Lapdancers), engineer Thom Flowers (Bad Astronaut, Sugarcult, Tim Cullen), and multi-instrumentalist Gar Robertson (Valentine’s Revenge, Sredni Vashtar). Patrick Warren (Fiona Apple, Aimee Mann) contributes lush, vintage keyboard sounds, with Milo DeCruz (Ryan Adams, Duncan Sheik) on bass and Stevie Blacke on strings.
Recently, she recorded a song for internationally acclaimed French producer Hector Zazou. Hear her multi-layered harmonies on “J’irai Pleurer Sous La Pluie” (“Cryin’ in the Rain”) on Zazou’s next record, “Looking in the Rear View Mirror.”
She is very proud to support GINA 411, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to bring together media agencies and artists to create an avenue of hope and awareness that can guide people whose family members become missing.
Amy Speace
"I kind of spilled blood all over this project," Amy Speace says of her new album 'The Killer In Me', which marks a quantum creative leap from the artist's 2006 breakthrough effort 'Songs For Bright Street'. While that release won her widespread critical acclaim and a loyal international fan base, 'The Killer In Me' finds the New York-based singer/songwriter forging into deeper, darker lyrical and musical terrain, borne largely out of her self-imposed isolation during the final separation of her long marriage.
"This is the record that I needed to make," Speace states. "In many ways, it was the hardest thing I've ever done. And in some ways, it was the easiest. Writing the songs was emotionally difficult, deep and intense - it was kind of an exorcism. But in the end, the songs flowed pretty quickly. You write the things that you’re afraid to say out loud.”
'The Killer In Me's' 12 soul-baring new songs maintain the effortless melodic appeal of her prior work, while delivering complex emotional insights that give the album startling intimacy and resonance. "The Killer In Me" chronicles a strangled co-dependent relationship, while "Haven't Learned A Thing" offers absolution for the continuing struggle in the attempt to connect with another and never getting it completely right. “This Love” speaks to the hope and uncertainty that comes with the onset of a new relationship. The album covers more terrain than romantic relationships, closing with “Piece By Piece,” written as a prayer to her father, wishing him peace and love after the death of his brother.
Most of the album was written in the rural isolation of a rented cabin in the Catskills after her final separation from her husband. "It was just me, some books, my journals, my guitar and the songs, with no phone and no TV," she explains. "I spent a lot of time reading and hiking and chopping wood for the stove, and wrote the songs that form the emotional center of this album.”
"The situation," she continues, "forced me to sit with a lot of silence, fear and confusion and make a kind of peace with them by writing songs to keep from going crazy. That's when the album started making sense to me and became a whole different thing. Something shifted when I realized what was going on in the world outside mirrored what was going on inside of me, and I wanted to write songs that bridged that divide.”
Speace recorded 'The Killer In Me' with her longtime producer and lead guitarist James Mastro, of Bongos/Health and Happiness Show fame, and her longstanding live band the Tearjerks, comprised of guitarist Rich Feridun, bassist Matt Lindsey and drummer Jagoda. The sessions took place at alt-pop legend Mitch Easter's Fidelitorium studio in North Carolina, with Easter lending his talents as engineer. Also on board is English rock icon Ian Hunter, who adds his distinctive vocals to a pair of songs.
Born in Baltimore and raised in small-town Pennsylvania, Speace initially had her sights set on a career as a playwright/actor, graduating from Amherst College and toured with the prestigious National Shakespeare Company. After moving to New York, she had roles in various off-Broadway productions and independent films, ran her own theater company, and taught Shakespeare in the New York City school system. After teaching herself to play guitar, she began setting her poetry to music, and quickly found songwriting to be the most creatively fulfilling thing she'd ever done. She soon began performing as half of the female duo Edith O. Speace made her solo debut with the 2002 release 'Fable', recorded with $5000 donated by fans and released on her own Twangirl label. Giving up her hard-won acting career to become a full-time musician, she hopped into her car and hit the road, booking herself into every club, café and college that would have her. After catching a performance at the SXSW music-industry festival, Judy Collins' manager brought Speace to the attention of Collins, who signed her to her Wildflower label. Her debut for the label, 'Songs For Bright Street', received warm praise from critics, including those in Europe, which has enabled her to build a strong touring base there.
Reflecting on making 'The Killer In Me', Speace concludes, "I got into music with my eyes wide open, having already been doing something else. I knew that the kind of music I wanted to make might be outside the realm of what's on the radio, but I didn't care. I just wanted to make something that's real. I’m as proud of this album as I am anything I’ve ever done."
"The Killer In Me" available here.
Anais Mitchell
From her current home base in a 200-year-old farmhouse in rural Vermont, Anaïs (“uh-NAY-iss”) Mitchell writes songs that are as intimate as conversations and as rich in detail as short stories. The daughter of “hippie back-to-the-landers” whose father was a novelist and English professor, she remembers her family’s home (another farmhouse in the same state) containing “a library full of novels, and lots of old folk and psychedelic rock albums. The books and the records all lived in the same room, which I am sure led to me thinking of songwriting as a kind of literature, a noble poetic enterprise”.
No surprise, then, that the reference points of her music may seem to come from all over the map while still interconnected: the country ballads of the Carter Family, the hard-edged cabaret of Brecht and Weill, the story-songs of Randy Newman, the vast narrative scope of Pink Floyd’s 'The Wall', and the intricately crafted tales of her namesake, bohemian feminist Anaïs Nin, to name a few. All of these influences come together in 'Hadestown', an epic “folk opera” retelling of the Orpheus myth. The saga of the poet who ventures into the underworld to rescue his dead wife — a tale now set in a post-apocalyptic world of poverty — began as a live performance created in collaboration with fellow Vermont artists director Ben Matchstick and arranger/orchestrator Michael Chorney. In their neck of the woods — TV-less by choice, far from big cities, in a land of radical politics and culture — making your own entertainment, and getting your friends and neighbors to help you flesh it out, is the only way to go. After fine-tuning the show, the trio gathered a cast of two dozen, commandeered a silver-spraypainted schoolbus, and hit the road (through several blizzards) for a couple of ragtag D.I.Y. tours of New England. The next logical step? 'Hadestown', the album, performed by a dream-team lineup including Ani DiFranco, Justin Vernon/Bon Iver, Greg Brown, and Mitchell herself, among others.
Mitchell may have grown up in the middle of nowhere, but she’s seen more of the world than you might expect. “I always traveled a lot as a kid”, she recalls today. “My mom had a little axiom about things it was OK to spend money on: ‘food, books, travel, and friends.’ (We later amended that to include records.) My parents wouldn’t buy me a cool jacket or a videogame or whatever, but they would ship me off to Europe or Japan. Later I ended up studying in Costa Rica, Austria, and Egypt. I always loved languages and the feeling of being out of context — which is maybe why I love traveling as a songwriter now… It feels natural”.
It also felt natural, after she had plenty of original songs under her belt, to start getting them out to the world, so in 2002 she took an early stab at recording a self-released album (now out of print), and two years later she made the disc she considers her true debut: 'Hymns For The Exiled', released on the Chicago-based indie Waterbug Records. That project brought producer/musician Chorney into the mix as a frequent collaborator.
A copy of 'Hymns' gradually made it to DiFranco, who offered to release her next album, 'The Brightness', in 2007, followed by a unique vinyl/CD collaboration with fellow singer/songwriter Rachel Ries, 'Country E.P.', in 2008, and now the 'Hadestown' recording. 'The Brightness' inspired a reviewer from the Boston Globe to praise Mitchell’s “vivid snapshots of sweetly ordinary moments,” while Acoustic Guitar called her “a songwriter of startling clarity and depth, equally skilled at turning a melody or lyrical phrase into what you didn’t know you needed until you heard it”, adding that she “weaves her stories into an effortlessly beautiful and cohesive tapestry with the skill of an artisan’s carpenter, showing no seams”.
Anaïs Mitchell is the rare musician who is equally comfortable wielding an acoustic guitar alone onstage, sharing a disc’s worth of alt-country duets, or scripting a vast operatic journey into the underworld. She’s a fearless explorer, and her world just keeps getting larger.
www.anaismitchell.com
www.myspace.com/anaismitchell
Angie Palmer
At seventeen Angie left England for Europe to follow in the footsteps of folk troubadours and ended up in Paris for five years busking a living playing bars, cinema queues and the Metro. Whilst living pretty much ‘down and out’ in a Paris commune on the Rue Nesle, mixing with some “strange and interesting people; writers, artists, premonitionists, and old ‘68 revolutionaries” she began writing her own songs and playing at free festivals.
She managed to save enough money to buy a van, which she converted into a camping bus, and then spent two years travelling around Europe before ending up in Geneva living as part of a buskers community.
After a few years she moved back to Paris where she met Paul Mason, a lecturer in philosophy from Manchester Metropolitan University. This fortuitous meeting in a Cafe Philosophique on the Place de Bastille led to a writing partnership and soon Angie returned to England and began recording.
The first two records, 'A Certain Kind of Distance' and 'Romantica Obscura', generated some interest, but Angie’s third CD 'Road' gained 4 and 5 star reviews and earned her comparisons with Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell thanks to lyrics described by reviewers as “intelligent” and “literate”. For others her potent mix of country, blues, and folk has led her to called the “British Lucinda Williams”. 'Road' made it on to the long-cut for the Mercury Prize in 2004.
Angie’s music was now being championed by Bob Harris, who called her “one of Britain’s greatest singer-songwriters” and this year she has appeared on his Saturday show for the second time. Angie’s electrifying live performances have seen her to most of the major festivals in Britain and Europe: Cambridge, Glastonbury, and Montreaux Jazz amongst them.
Her forth CD 'Tales of Light and Darkness' (which also made the long cut for the Mercury Music Prize 2006) continued where 'Road' left off, mixing strong narrative songs with smaller, more personal reflections. HMV Choice said “Not since Bob Dylan’s mid-60’s output has a singer jammed songs with so many high-culture reference points”. In the last two years Angie’s music has featured on film soundtracks in both England ('Call Me', which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival) and France ('In The Heart of Others'.)
Her new CD 'Meanwhile, As Night Falls...' was written while living in France on the edge of a forest and the influence of European folk tales, songs and stories are reflected in the writing and in the haunting darkness of the music. The new CD shows the maturing of one of the most literate and compelling of singer-songwriters who is never afraid to take on big themes and stretch out across musical genres and marks her out as a unique British talent.
Anna Wolfe
Anna Wolfe was born on March 10th, 1972, the third of five children and raised on an Arabian horse farm outside of the two stop light town of Kirtland, Ohio. Anna’s family lineage is filled with artisans.
It was the woods that gave her inspiration, as she would literally imitate the songbirds as she walked and played outside. She gave her first performance at age three and started to make up songs in play soon after. Her mother reports that “Anna came out singing and hasn’t stopped since.” At age nine, with guitar lessons, came the further knowledge that she could write songs, and she wrote many throughout grade school and beyond recording six albums of all-original material.
In 2008, Anna was signed to the Muddy Sunshine label in Nashville, TN, the town in which she now calls home. "Love", her seventh all original recording, is her first release on this new label.
Wolfe's music has been compared to such greats as Joni Mitchell, Laura Nero, Joan Baez, Annie Lennox and Kate Bush. With classically inspired piano and guitar and with vocals and lyrics that stem from roots folk, she performs with poetic grace and natural wisdom. Having fronted five bands, including her Albuquerque band, "Anna Wolfe and the Hounds of Carlisle", Anna is currently booked as a solo act.
"Love", is true to her solo, live performance. With fantasia, faith and authenticity, Anna’s compassionate lyrics offer comfort and character. Her music is a gentle hand on the brow and loving arms for anyone who may need them. Her imagination exceeds the ordinary and blossoms free with melodies of grace. Wolfe’s music is gentle, yet vivacious. Anna Wolfe is unassuming and down to earth with one ear to the sky.
www.annawolfe.com
www.muddysunshine.com
www.myspace.com/annawolfesings
Annie Keating
“Keating is a wise mix of Lucinda Williams songwriting, Gillian Welch guitar and a vocal all her own. One of these singer-songwriters that lets her music do the talking. Her style invokes a cross between Willie Nelson and John Prine, and you don’t get any better than that!”
You don’t get any better than that. No frills, just passionate music and intimate songs, both tough and tender. Her sultry voice cuts straight to the heart.
Childhood, relationships, battles won and battles lost. There’s an honsety here, real and brave, that lets you know this is a woman who will travel roads not taken and go the distance.
Through her journeys, Annie Keating writes songs that takes us places.
Anouschka
"I am convinced we must find our way back to a mystical reverence for the harmony between animals, man and nature, and leave a world of wonder for the children of tomorrow. With my music, I hope to make a difference."
Singer-songwriter Anouschka believes in working for a better world. Her slogan “Good music for a good cause” ties in various causes with her performances and releases. Proceeds from her second album release went to a scholarship foundation for children in Kenya.
Her current release funds her two months in South Africa studying wildlife conservation while earning a South African Field Guide certificate. She is currently working on the music for a campaign with a wildlife expert in South Africa. Anouschka also volunteers at her local animal shelter, the largest in Europe.
Anouschka was born in Sweden, but raised in the United States, Europe and Asia. This international background is vividly reflected in her music, where she draws upon various influences with ease. She speaks French, English, Swedish and German. After graduating from Tufts University with a BA in Political Science, Anouschka, rebel and guitar babe at heart, moved to Stockholm and joined an all-girl rock band.
An offer for a TV project in Boston lured her back to the States. She spent some years in New York working in advertising (while moonlighting in a comedy group). In 1991, she was accepted to the prestigious Berklee College of Music. While there, she won numerous songwriting awards as well as a scholarship and graduated Cum Laude in 1995. After graduation she worked as a music teacher in the Boston inner city schools. At the same time she released her debut EP “Anouschka”.
Unfortunately, a herniated disc and consequent spine surgery forced her to take a break from stage work. In 1995, looking for a slower pace, she returned to Sweden. In Stockholm she stood out as the only woman at jams who could play guitar, bandlead the men while improvising tunes on the spot. These blues influences and improvisational approach are heard in her album “My Kind of Heartbreak,” which was recorded in a small analog studio.
“My Kind of Heartbreak” went on to place on the Americana Charts (AMA) in the USA for 2 months, positioning her next to the likes of Bonnie Raitt and Bob Dylan on playlists. "Man Like You" shot to no 2 at the Midnight Special Blues Radio in France.
While in Sweden Anouschka also earned a Masters at Stockholm University in Natural Resource Management, and acted in Danish and Swedish TV commercials. Aside form music, her passions are wildlife conservation, education, and poverty alleviation.
Her new mini-album "So Why?" has just been released.
www.anouschka.net
www.myspace.com/anouschka007
www.myspace.com/anouschkatunes
Anthony Crawford
Anthony Crawford, born May 5, 1957, in Birmingham, Alabama, was a "star" in the hospital nursery where he was tagged "Pistol Pete" by the nurses, and has been known by his parents as Pete ever since. His musical talent began to bud at age five when asking for a twelve string guitar. His little hands were too small to fit around the neck and the guitar was later replaced. He had a natural yearning to pursue music and will tell you that he was/is influenced by everything really.
"I always wanted to feel the coordination between both hands, always fascinated by artists who could finger pick. I never thought of music as an avenue to be famous...it was the act of doing it that intrigued me. It was never a self serving highway of success in my mind. And still to this day it is about the love of music instead of what it can do for me."
By the time Anthony was older, he and his brother cut grass and worked odd jobs in order to buy a Martin guitar. This really inspired him, and the Martin became his constant companion. Anthony began performing while in Mt. Brook High School, singing in such school productions as 'South Pacific'’ and 'Fiddler On The Roof'. He also performed in a couple of nightclubs around town which brought plenty of recognition and a steady following. After winning a contest in downtown Birmingham, he found himself on the stage of The Grand Ole Opry with Roy Acuff.
Nashville became home to Anthony, performing live at Opryland, touring with the Sonny James Band, and doing television shows with Ralph Emery and Hee Haw. He caught the eye of many in Nashville including Rounder Records and Little Dog Records. After traveling throughout the Southeast, playing various string instruments, his associations expanded to include tours with Neil Young & The Shocking Pinks, Neil Young & The International Harvesters, Neil Young & His Electric Band, Steve Winwood ('Roll With It'-tour), Dwight Yoakam, Pegi Young Band, Nicolette Larson and Blackhawk. He currently is on the road touring with Neil Young on what's been coined 'The Neverending Tour', otherwise known as 'The Continental Tour'. Playing improvisational blues riffs on Neil's 'Tonight's the Night and 'Speakin' Out', Neil has taken full advantage of what Anthony is capable of bringing to the table and he has not disappointed.
Known in the industry not only as a musical prodigy for the ability to play any instrument, Anthony has proved himself to be a gifted photographer as well, taking the album cover photo for Neil Young's 'Chrome Dreams II'. His inspiration came from seeing Neil's old rusted out cars at his home in Redwood City, CA while rehearsing for the Chrome Dreams Continental Tour. The collection can now be viewed at various museums throughout California.
With a seemingly unending array of gifts, videographer has now been added to Crawford’s list of professions, soon releasing a new documentary on CD/DVD titled, ‘On The Road With A Rock Star’ that captures day to day life with Neil Young and the gang as well as internal thoughts and views while on the road.
A prolific songwriter, Crawford has unbelievably written over four-hundred songs and had them recorded by artists such as Steve Winwood, Pegi Young, Kenny Rogers, Lee Greenwood, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Billy Burnette and Lorrie Morgan. It’s no wonder his talent has lead him to the forefront of musical greats. Having created several solo albums including his self-titled debut album and 'Radio Cafe', his latest, 'Five Is Red', is his proudest accomplishment to date. It is a true collaboration recorded with the band Everest (who records on Neil Young's Vapor Records), as well as Bo Koster from My Morning Jacket.
www.anthonycrawford.com
www.youtube.com/woottoots
www.myspace.com/crawfordanthony
Arthur Adam
September 2007. Arthur Adam and Dutch producer Maarten Besseling headed for Valdemarsvik, Sweden for a project called "In a Cabin With...".
There, in a wooden house, in the quiet, they recorded 10 songs in 7 days. Some songs were written at home, some were written on the spot. They worked day and night and came home with an album that is atmospheric, a little sad, quiet, yet intense and colorful, like a sunny day in September. Arthur Adam's "In a Cabin With..." was the first only-download album to have ever been elected "Album of the Week" by www.3voor12.nl, the most influential Dutch indie/rock-website/community. The album got lots of great reviews and led to many interviews and radio and tv appearances in the Netherlands. In April 2008 Arthur Adam was elected artist of the week by www.MySpace.com in the Netherlands.
What people say about Arthur Adam :
"We don’t know if Arthur ten Cate called himself Adam because his songs sound as pure as life in Paradise once must have been. What we do know is that this talented multi-instrumentalist and songwriter seems to be able to write jazzy pop songs effortlessly. The songs are intimate, vulnerable and stay exciting. Need to compare? Think Joni Mitchell, Brian Wilson, Damien Rice and Sufjan Stevens. " (www.P60.nl)
"The song material on "In A Cabin With..." is of amazing quality."(www.FileUnder.nl)
"A special singer-songwriter album, carried by his haunting vocals and tasteful and subtle arrangements ... it will not let you go." (Volkskrant)
"Arthur Adam recently entered the realms of the category singer-songwriter extra-ordinaire. People that have seen him play already knew…: the man has a phenomenal voice, a huge reach, giant hands, a lovely guitar playing style and great slightly twisted songs." (Radio 6)
What he has to say for himself :
"I am a singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Amsterdam, the Netherlands. As Arthur Adam I write, sing and play my own sensitive and slightly different tunes, (since it is not really common for music to be meant to listen to anymore, I might as well state: my music is meant for (your) ears). But I am not your average hopeless romantic, although I tend to lose hope and cling to some romantic hippie ideals. I sing about love, doubt, death and often about the strangeness and awkwardness of everyday life…"
www.myspace.com/arthuradammusic
Audrey Auld
Audrey Auld is a musician in the ‘Americ-kinda’ style - traditional American country and folk influences with strong Australian roots. "Music With The Dirt Left On" is how she describes her sound. Audrey Auld is a spontaneous, engaging comedian & writer of humorous, provocative & poignant songs, with a trad country vocal style - a little bit Loretta Lynn and a touch of Randy Newman with that distinctive Aussie humor. Whether performing solo or accompanied by a stellar lead player she connects with her audience.
Despite playing classical violin from age 6 and eventually performing with the Tasmanian Youth Orchestra at 14, an introduction in Art School to Texas music and traditional Country lead to a passionate exploration of the history of American roots music.
Now, with 7 albums to her credit, her own record label (Reckless Records), 11 years of international touring, winner of the Chris Austin Song Contest (MerleFest 2006), several Australian Recording Industry Assn. and Gold Guitar nominations and cuts by various artists, Audrey Auld is established as one of Australia’s most-respected singer/songwriters and since her relocation to the USA in ‘03 she’s fast becoming a favorite with American audiences too.
"Audrey Auld is a great singer songwriter. She holds a unique place in contemporary Americana/Roots music. She is one of the most honest original artists I know." ~ Fred Eaglesmith
Abi Tapia
Ad Vanderveen
A Hindmarsh Trio
Aggieland
Albert & Gage
Al Rose
Ali Eskandarian
All Day Sucker
Allan Thomas
Allison Moorer
Ally Kerr
Amchitka 1970
Amelia Curran
Amy Allison
Amy Raasch
Amy Speace
Anais Mitchell
Angie Palmer
Anna Wolfe
Annie Keating
Anouschka
Anthony Crawford
Arthur Adam
Audrey Auld
