NPR ALL THINGS CONSIDERED PERFORMANCE/CHAT, KCRW & OKAYPLAYER HAIL ECLECTIC MUSICIAN KRYSTLE WARREN’S FIRST ALBUM IN FIVE YEARS ‘THREE THE HARD WAY’ (AUGUST 18 / PARLOUR DOOR MUSIC)

2012’S ‘LOVE SONGS,” ONE OF THE BEST ALBUMS OF THE YEAR” (GUARDIAN) TO BE REISSUED FOR ITS FIFTH ANNIVERSARY

 

“ONE OF THE GREATEST LIVING SINGERS,” SAYS COLLABORATOR RUFUS WAINWRIGHT

 

Krystle Warren – the singer, songwriter, bandleader, and Rufus Wainwright collaborator  – will release her first album in five years ‘Three The Hard Way’ on August 18 on Parlour Door Music. NPR All Things Considered spoke with her about the announcement, calling her music “evocative storytelling."

 

Link to first single “Thanks and Praise” (OK to share).

 

Recorded, mixed, and co-produced by Ben Kane (D’Angelo, Emily King, PJ Morton), it’s also earned early spins on KCRW. okayplayer hailed its announcement, calling her "a light in dark times," continuing, "If you're a fan of uncut soul and spirited r&b, Krystle Warren should not escape your gaze or rotation.” A potent mix of styles, ‘Three The Hard Way’ swirls with R&B, folk music, jazz, hip hop, blues, gospel strains and yet is entirely original in its sound and scope, which ranges from spirituality and love to the effects of social media on our lives and gentrification. One of the album’s most poignant moments is “Red Clay,” about the Tulsa, OK African-American community of Greenwood that was destroyed by the Klu Klux Klan in a riot in 1921, not far from where Warren’s grandmother lived.

 

She will also reissue her 2012 album ‘Love Songs,’ hailed as “one of the best albums of the year” by the Guardian, on July 30, also on Parlour Door Music.

 

Warren has earned effusive and widespread praise in the press and among her peers:

 

"Formidable… one of the greatest living singers at the moment." -Rufus Wainwright

 

“Established talent” – T Magazine

 

"Krystle Warren: you should really give her a listen. You won't believe what you're hearing; she's amazing." - KD Lang

 

“****… remarkable… gloriously original.” – The Guardian

 

“Explosive… smoky voiced” – LA Times

 

“Impressive.” –Consequence of Sound

 

"Warren's voice is an extraordinary instrument, murmuring with tenderness at times, growling with intensity at others. It vividly recalls Nina Simone in its depth and smokiness, as well as John Martyn and [Jeff] Buckley in terms of virtuosic variety."  -The Guardian

 

Already in her career, she was handpicked by Joe Boyd to tour as part of Way To Blue, a stage tribute to Nick Drake. Born and raised in Kansas City, MO, she now lives with her partner in Paris, France; her time in Paris is tackled in “If Memory Serves Me Well.”

 

DAVID LOWERY TO SPEAK AT AMERICANA MUSIC CONFERENCE IN NASHVILLE, TN

LA TIMES AND PANDO DAILY RUN INTERVIEWS WITH OUTSPOKEN ARTIST RIGHTS ADVOCATE ABOUT COMPULSORY USE

The Americana Music Association has announced the David Lowery – lead singer of the bands Cracker and Camper Van Beethoven and University of Georgia economics and music business professor – will offer insights on timely legislative issues debated and host the American Bar Association’s Symposium on Entertainment. The Conference will be headquartered out of the Sheraton Nashville Downtown hotel September 18-22.

LA Times has called Lowery "a vocal advocate for artists trying to make a living in music while CD sales crumble and fledgling online services try to build an audience," continuing, "David Lowery has a modest proposal to help his fellow musicians in the digital age: force Pandora and other online music services to negotiate for the right to play songs." Read the entire LA Times feature.

Meanwhile, Lowery broke down his earnings as a songwriter from Pandora for Pando Daily.

Read Lowery's uncensored thoughts on the music business at the Trichordist blog.

THE BO-KEYS AND ATLANTIC RECORDS SOUL MAN PERCY WIGGINS COLLABORATE ON DOUBLE SHOT OF MEMPHIS SOUL FOR "WRITING ON THE WALL" 7" AND DIGITAL SINGLE AUGUST 7

NEW YORKERS: THE BO-KEYS TO HEADLINE HUDSON RIVER PARK BLUES BBQ FESTIVAL AUGUST 25

“Masters of the Memphis sound” (NPR) the Bo-Keys will perform in Hudson River Park on August 25, following a wave of acclaim for last year's 'Got To Get Back!' (Electraphonic Recordings), joined by vocalist and Atlantic Records singer Percy Wiggins. "Writing on the Wall" is a hard-hitting minor key R&B, reminiscent of Bobby "Blue" Bland. For more information, please go to: http://www.hudsonriverpark.org/events/blues-bbq

Photos.

Last year's 'Got To Get Back!' appeared on Associated Press' list of top albums of 2011, alongside albums by Adele, Beyonce, Jay-Z & Kanye West, The Roots, The Black Keys, and others. Meanwhile, the band has earned two Blues Music Award nominations, for Band of the Year and for Best Soul Blues Album of the Year.

Percy Wiggins cut classic soul sides in the 60s for ATCO and RCA with a Nashville studio band including Billy Cox and Larry Lee who later went on to become members of Jimi Hendrix’s Band of Gypies.

Of The Bo-Keys, The Wall Street Journal said, “Funky[,] authentic groove… If the Bo-Keys sound like Memphis in the 1960s and early '70s, it's probably because most of the band's musicians were recording back then for the city's top labels.”

The Associated Press said, “Strong… The Bo-Keys present a muscular yet spare sound that captures the grit and grease of classic, horn-driven R&B. Where many revivalists pale compared to the originals, the Bo-Keys would have fit right in next to legendary Memphis musical crews the Bar-Kays and Booker T. & the M.G.'s.”

The LA Times reviewed a recent concert, calling it "a fiery set that unfolded like a classic soul revue."

The Bo-Keys' co-founder Charles "Skip" Pitts passed away May 1 of this year and was remembered in a segment on NBC NightlyNews with Brian Williams.

"SUPERB" HOLIDAY FOLK MUSIC OF 'THE GATHERING' EARNS PLAUDITS, COMES TO NYC THIS WEEK

'The Gathering' by Laurelyn Dossett, Rhiannon Giddens, Mike Compton, Joe Newberry, and Jason Sypher. Meanwhile, the only performance by the band outside of North Carolina will be Saturday at City Winery. Here are some of the reviews we're reading:

"A breath of fresh, pine-scented air."
- LA Times

"What the season must have sounded like before shopping and Irving Berlin."
– The Wall Street Journal

"Superb."
– Chicago Sun-Times

"****"
– American Songwriter

"****1/2… It's a fresh approach to wintry music, with mountain-music instrumentation and crystalline harmonies."
– Houston Chronicle

"A nice change of pace, bluegrass style."
– Detroit News

"A welcome departure from the usual acoustic holiday fare [with] many highlights."
- Metromix

"A lovely piece of music."
- Raleigh News Observer

"It has a certain magic about it, this music, in the seeming ease of its instrumental virtuosity coupled to a spirit of friendship and common cause—there is not a moment on The Gathering that doesn’t sound free and impassioned, musicians having a great time playing with each other and giving their hearts to the task at hand."
– The Bluegrass Special

Click here for a video of Giddens and Dossett dueting on "String of Pearls."