Ever since being turned on to the likes of Feist and Regina Spector of pop fame, possibly even since, long ago, I was turned on to Nico of The Velvet Underground or the big three: Ella, Sarah, and Billie, I've been an admirer of the female vocalist. Even better when they rock out on their respective instruments. There's just something about a girl and a guitar, I guess...
Anyhow, I've got a couple of choice picks for you to consider for your listening pleasure:
I heard a track on this album recently that really caught my attention. There seems to be an uncanny balance between minimalism and complexity here. I'm not talking about quantum physics-type complexity, but merely a thickness not usually produced by just a handful of instruments. In "Love is Won," instrumentation consists mainly of drums and piano, with a smattering of organ for emphasis(nice drawbar settings, by the way). The song follows a simple change and is reinforced by a fairly simple, on the down beat, drum line, but something makes the song remarkable. It could be Lia Ices' voice, a fragile sounding ambience, yet in the driver's seat lead, but I think there is some sort of eclectic sound built in the plain. This album is far from plain in the traditional sense of the word, but it would be a nice, easy listen for one of these upcoming rainy spring days. Justin Vernon, that by-now-ubiquitous Jack of all trades, even lends some support to his fellow label mate's latest effort.
Fronted by Holly Newsom, this trio is dynamic in their minimalistic efforts. I recently had the opportunity to witness their music/awkward stage banter live, and I have to admit that even the awkward stage banter impressed me. Like their music, the stage banter was just them doing their own thing. The uniqueness of Newsom's voice again stands out, but she also expertly weaves guitar-picking and melody lines into one natural flow. A few minimalistic guitar solos later, you hardly notice that this is three separate musicians playing in a band as opposed to a single entity itself. The bass grooves of Tim Abramson along with a solid drummer (Thom Burton) really solidify the wholeness of the sound. They just seem to all click. Once again, this group is, what I would define as, minimalism with a knockout punch.
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