Ruth Moody's previous solo album The Garden was a delight and she's back with another winner with These Wilder Things , the albums is officially released in the UK on June 10th on True North Records, the multi-instrumentalist Australian born founder member of The Wailin' Jenny's who's now based in Canada has gathered together a whole bunch of class acts to play and sing the album, alongside her touring band, Adam Dobres (guitar), Adrian Dolan (fiddle, mandolin, accordion) and Sam Howard (upright bass) there are contributions from fellow Jennys Nicky Mehta and Heather Masse, Crooked [...]
The Wailin' Jennys is spawning some excellent solo albums. First Heather Masse, now Ruth Moody is set to release her sophomore solo album, These Wilder Things, on May 7th. Moody's angelic, lilting soprano tangles with pop-polished bluegrass and folk. The ... Continue reading
Ruth Moody 's solo debut album The Garden ended up as one of our favorite albums of 2010, a sublime mix of modern folk songwriting, Moody's enticing voice and acoustic backing that delved deep into traditional Americana while still sounding fresh and new. As one of three members of the brilliantly harmonious neo-folk trio The Wailin' Jennys, Moody knows a thing or two about singing and songwriting and new solo project The Wilder Things (April 23, Red House) is an accomplished and completely winning step forward. Once again produced by [...]
Multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter Annabelle Chvostek who was born and bred in Toronto, though perhaps best known for her work with the Juno-winning Wailin’ Jennys, Chvostek released three independent albums plus an EP between '97 and '04 and after parting from the Wailin' Jennys came her fourth solo album Resilience and the excellent Live From Folk Alley that I wrote about in 2011. Influenced by recent world events and keen step outside of the musical comfort zone Rise is the result, an album through which Chvostek delivers her call-to-arms delivering political subject matter and a cry [...]
...because sometimes there are no words. The Changing Colors: Take Care Of All My Children (orig. Tom Waits) [ 2011 ] The Wailin' Jennys: Calling All Angels (orig. Jane Siberry) [ 2009 ] Laura Cantrell: I'll Remember You (orig. Kui Lee) [...]
An album that's being on my playlist for the last couple of months is the The Garden by Australian born Ruth Moody who grew up in the Canadian Prairies in Manitoba and is probably best known as a founder member of the wonderful Wailin’ Jennys she has also fronted the Canadian band Scruj MacDuhk - later to become The Duhks and although she’s released solo material before (the Blue Muse EP in 2002) this is Ruth’s first full length album, the twelve track release features an all original set of tunes on which [...]
Thoughts on Shows by Tom Sweeney Review Notes : Jan 26, 2012 The Greystones Sheffield, UK Ruth Moody of The Wailin' Jennys Ruth Moody - Travellin' [...]
Every day til the end of December we'll review one of our 2011 DC favorites: Some artists have the ability to simply transcend their genre, creating music with enormous appeal that knows no set boundaries or limitations. For us, no one exemplifies this better than the acclaimed roots/folk trio The Wailin' Jennys -- Nicki Mehta, Ruth Moody and Heather Masse. With their first new studio recordings in four years, Bright Morning Stars , out February 8 via Red House, the mostly Canadian trio (newest member Masse is from [...]
Though it falls on Columbus Day, Canadian Thanksgiving Day seems relatively untainted by the parallel history of white privilege and savagery which have come to typify the two American holidays with which it shares either date or name. Rather, though giving thanks in the territories is still partially grounded in the European exploration of territories and provinces, Thanksgiving Day in Canada was originally established as a harvest holiday, pure and simple, first as a natural extension of the human need to celebrate the cornucopia, and subsequently by proclamation, in 1957. My connection to Canadian Thanksgiving is familial: [...]
Newport Folk 2011 Photos by Mark Jenko Wailin' Jennys - Storm Comin' The are Hundreds of Stories At Newport Folk, This is But One.... With a flourish of instrumentation, hand claps and vocal harmony, The Wailin' Jennys opened [...]
Today's Friday Mixtape comes to you from Jan and it's entitled PaperPlanes. It's very much softer and slower . There will be no rump shaking around here this week. Thanks to everyone else who sent in their respective mixtapes. This was my favorite for the week if only because it's an auditory exploration of Also there is no full length streaming version of this just individual mp3s. Play this week's mixtape: 13 Angels Standing Guard 'Round the Side of Your Bed - A Silver Mt. Zion [...]
A stripped-down masterclass in close harmony singing Beautiful three-part harmonies, country-inflected melodies, acoustic arrangements punctuated by occasional electric accents -- these elements have earned the Wailin' Jennys a loyal fan base. Their two previous albums, 40 Days and Firecracker, solidified their status as alt-country divas, and nothing in their latest release, Bright Morning Stars, will undermine that. The three voices of Ruth Moody, Nicky Mehta, and Heather Masse intertwine in impeccable harmony, with each song perfectly suited to the singers' strengths. This...
Bright Morning Stars is the fourth album to come from this incredibly talented trio, the Wailin’ Jennys were formed after a chance meeting for a one-off in store performance at a guitar shop in Winnipeg, Manitoba, back 2004 they released their first full-length album 40 Days which won them a Juno Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year, the follow up Firecracker was equally well received spending over a year on the Billboard bluegrass charts, with the departure of Annabelle Chvostek New York based Heather Masse joined the group to record Bright [...]
On July 25th, 1965, one of the most fabled concert moments in history occurred when Bob Dylan plugged in his guitar at the Newport Folk Festival in Newport, RI. In homage to that man’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” this year’s George Wein’s Newport Folk Festival line-up was revealed with the help of fans turning over cards displaying the artists’ names. And like years past, those names make one hell of a lineup. The Decemberists, Emmylou Harris, and Elvis Costello (solo acoustic) will all make return appearances, this time as headliners. Other familiar faces making a [...]
It's almost too easy to overlook The Wailin' Jennys . Everyone wants to find the new buzz band in the hottest made up genre, and as a result, we let timeless melodies and stop-you-in-your-tracks vocal work slip through our fingers like handfuls of sand. With seemingly limitless talent, a musical appreciation that can make a music critic blush and a style as warm as a summer breeze, you just kind of assume the Jennys have been around forever, and always will be. That's why it's hard to believe it's been almost 6 years [...]
Not sure how I missed The Wailin' Jennys releasing a new album this week. They got Mark Howard (Bob Dylan, Lucinda Williams) to produce and have a whole slew of Canada's finest joining them: Bill Dillon (Joni Mitchell, Peter Gabriel), Kevin Breit (Norah Jones), Colin Cripps (Kathleen Edwards), Richard Moody (The Bills) and Jeremy Penner. Recorded in a nice looking shack near Haliburton, Ontario. Check the video below for a behind the scenes and listen/download to the mp3 from their record label ( Red House Records ). Listen: The Wailin' Jennys ∞ Swing [...]
Some artists have the ability to simply transcend their genre, creating music with enormous appeal that knows no set boundaries or limitations. For us, no one exemplifies this better than the acclaimed roots/folk trio The Wailin' Jennys -- Nicki Mehta, Ruth Moody and Heather Masse. With their first new studio recordings in four years, Bright Morning Stars , due February 8 via Red House, the mostly Canadian trio (newest member Masse is from New England) have created an exquisite album of dazzling beauty. Gorgeous, three-part harmonies don't get much better than they do here and with [...]
It's been a while since Gord Downie has come to town, and despite the fact that 90% of the Hip's fans are insufferable idiots no one wants to be around, the man is a Canadian music legend and can pen a song that stands the test of time. Quite unexpectedly, I fell hard for his latest, Walla produced solo effort, The Grand Bounce ( review ), and I have to admit I'm pretty excited about seeing Downie & The Country Miracles - his backing band that includes Morningstar, Clark, Doiron, and Finlayson - in a sit [...]
I have a thing for sweet harmony of any type, but not all harmonies are created equal - or should be. And though there are many factors which can affect how voices blend - from range to accent, from tone to purity of voice - gender pairing has much to do with the fundamental possibilities which can emerge from singing together. More often than not, strong male/female duos and mixed-gender groups produce a study in contrast, leaning heavily on the contrast between their vocal range and tone - see the newest [...]
My friend Julie first introduced me to The Wailin' Jennys , and I'm really grateful to her for that. The Jennys are from Winnipeg, and have influences from Bluegrass, Country, and Traditional Scots-Irish tunes. In a lot of ways, perhaps, it's both apt and misleading to say that the Jennys are a sort of countrified Indigo Girls. But I think that the emphasis on vocal harmonies, and attention to craft, make it a moderately-successful analogy. In any case, their sound features big, goosebump-inducing harmonies, and their performances (as you can see below) are both commanding and gentle. Not the [...]
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Noteworthy (Stream): Kanye West – Black Skinhead (SNL Performance)
Kanye West Performs “Black Skinhead” & “New Slaves” On ‘SNL’ Season Finale: Watch
Watch Fred Armisen’s SNL farewell with Carrie Brownstein, Kim Gordon, J Mascis, Aimee Mann
Watch Kanye West on Saturday Night Live, performing “Black Skinhead” and “New Slaves”
