Deaglan
New Member
ROSIE THOMAS (Sub Pop)
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ESTER DRANG (Jade Tree)
CrawDaddy, Harcourt St
Fri 18th Nov. Doors 8pm
Two of America’s finest underground guitar acts make their respective Irish debut’s on Friday 18th Nov when they come to CrawDaddy. Sub Pop, famous as the label that launched the careers of Nirvana and later The Rapture; is represented by the introspective beauty of Seattle’s Rosie Thomas who promotes the release of her excellent new album ‘If Songs Could Be Held’ – an album dominated by Rosie’s distinct lilting and deeply moving songs that has many critics making favourable comparisons to Aimee Mann. Having first appeared on Sub Pop collaborating with Damien Jurado; Rosie has toured previously with Iron & Wine and The Shins and amongst the collaborators on her new album are Ed Harcourt and Josh Myers.
Flaming Lips collaborators Ester Drang are the hottest new act on the highly-respected Americana specialist label Jade Tree and their forthcoming album ‘Rocinate’ (due Jan 06) is set to win them many more fans and highlights why Pop Matters declared them a ‘revelation. From Broken Arrow Oklahoma; Ester Drang’s engaging upbeat symphonies draw comparisons with Spiritualized, The Sea & Cake, The Beta Band and of course their buddies Flaming Lips. Ester Drang are lucky to be coming here having last month survived a sever car crash while on tour in the US that wrote off their van and most of their equipment inside it.
More info on both acts below…
ROSIE THOMAS
At their best, well-written, expertly-executed songs do more than just tell a story — they pose important questions. On If Songs Could Be Held, her third full-length for Sub Pop, Seattle songwriter/vocalist Rosie Thomas approaches the sometimes difficult but universal topics of introspection, identity and love with bravery, honesty, and above all, stunning beauty. These songs aren’t all about Thomas’ personal experience, however. This departure into the fictitious is only the first of numerous artistic stretches from 2003’s Only With Laughter Can You Win and Thomas’ 2001 Sub Pop debut, When We Were Small. Making a concerted effort to remove herself from her comfort zone, the Seattleite went so far as to pack her bags and work on the new album amidst the hustle and heat of Los Angeles. Thomas may have already sounded angelic before recording in the City of Angels, but the bold resolution in her voice this time around was certainly born of the strength she gained taking chances.
“I felt that in order to push myself musically, I would have to take myself outside of what is familiar,” Thomas, who approached her songwriting technique and vocal delivery using a fresh methodology during the recording process, explains. Her intense focus and admirable openness paid off: from the palpably raw explorations of learning to love on “Guess It May” to her warm duet with songwriter Ed Harcourt on “Let It Be Me,” If Songs Could Be Held exists as Thomas’ masterwork, lyrically painted with a bright and dynamic emotional palette. Her themes are thick with literary foils: delicate, but steeped in innate strength. Thomas examines femininity as well on “Time Goes Away,” based on her mother’s stories. “Pretty Dress,” which poses questions about the difficulty and necessity of exploring potential and how that process relates to ideas of beauty and identity, is told as a parable.
Although longtime collaborator and close friend Eric Fisher was an integral part of the compositional and creative process as he was on previous records, If Songs Could Be Held marks the first time in the course of her solo career that Thomas has collaborated with musicians outside her circle of family and friends. In addition to the aforementioned duet on “Let It Be Me,” the new album features contributions from Liz Phair guitarist Dino Meneghin and accomplished film soundtrack string arranger Josh Myers.
As an artist, Thomas’ relationship with her songs has always been intensely personal and often tumultuous: her creations are “heavy, and wonderful, and taken care of even like a friend,” as she puts it. Since Sub Pop was first introduced to her delicate vocals on Damien Jurado’s Ghost of David (Thomas sings on “Parking Lot”) and Badlands: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska (she and Jurado duet on “Wages of Sin”), Thomas’ formidable solo career has gained her acclaim from critics and fans alike. No Depression calls her voice “delicate, exquisite”, and Paste Magazine labeled her a “powerhouse vocalist.” Aside from the aforementioned previous full-lengths, she has toured extensively with labelmates Iron and Wine and The Shins, and will hit the road in support of her new material throughout 2005.
If Songs Could Be Held was Recorded by Mike Busbee at Brown Welch in Pasadena, CA.
ESTER DRANG
Though considered by many to be a relatively new act, Ester Drang has spent the last eight years droning away in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, playing their elegant and arty songs to a dedicated but rather modest following. Convinced it would be a travesty to let these engaging symphonies go unnoticed, Jade Tree signed the band in early 2003, providing a home for their swinging-door guitar lines, hollowed out drum beats and synth-covered yearnings, while allowing the group to deliver their visions with Technicolor radiance. These days the Drang seem to tight-rope walk along the same musical heights as heady experimentalists like Spiritualized, the Sea and Cake or even their neighbors and occasional collaborators the Flaming Lips. But there is of course more here than easy compartmentalizing, and as these four friends from the Bible Belt continue their Quixote-like search for a niche of their own, they do so proving that musical transcendence can lead you anywhere. Even Oklahoma.
Useful links for more information……..
http://www.esterdrang.com
http://myspace.com/drang
http://www.jadetree.com/bands/artist/ester_drang
