Kathryn Calder
date: October 25, 2011
label: File Under: Music
downloads: (right click and "save link as")
mp3 - Who Are You?
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tracklist:
1. One, Two, Three
2.
Who Are You?
3.
Turn A Light On
4. Walking In My Sleep
5. All The Things
6. Right Book
7. New Frame Of Mind
8. City Of Sounds
9. Five More Years
10. Younger Than We’ve Ever Been
date: August 3, 2010
label: File Under: Music
downloads: (right click and "save link as")
mp3 - Arrow
mp3 - Slip Away
tracklist:
1. Slip Away
2. Low
3. Castor and Pollux
4. Arrow
5. If You Only Knew
6. Follow Me Into The Hills
7. Down The River
8. A Day Long Past Its Prime
9. So Easily
10. All It Is
Life is full of surprises. Nobody knows this more than Kathryn Calder. After years of playing in indie darlings Immaculate Machine, she found herself in the very unexpected position of being asked to record and tour with The New Pornographers. Before she knew it, she was inducted as a full fledged member of that group. In 2010 she once again surprised herself (and fans) by releasing her first solo album of her own compositions entitled Are You My Mother?, which would garner favorable press throughout the world and hinted a dizzying array of different avenues that the songwriter could explore in the future.
Now just one year after the release of her debut album, Calder has returned with another full length album, appropriately titled Bright and Vivid. Written and recorded in a relatively short amount of time, Bright and Vivid is a masterfully refined piece of work that illustrates a maturation that can only come from intense growth and change. Some folks break when too much happens in a short period of time, yet Calder reached deep within and manifested it into a striking gift for listeners. Throw out any preconceived ideas that you had about Kathryn Calder and you will be rewarded with the biggest surprise you’ll have this year.
The first thing you will notice from the onset of the first track “One, Two, Three” is that the production level is massive with layers upon layers of different shades of sound that continues to unfold with each listen. Not only is the production expansive, but the performances are precise. Kathryn is backed this go round by a newly minted band consisting of Lane Arndt, Stefan Bozenick and Marek Tyler. Additional parts were provided by friends and fans of Kathryn, including: Jon Wurster (Superchunk,Mountain Goats), Dean Tzenos (Odonis, Odonis), Jesse Zubot, Barry Mirochnik and Paul Rigby (Neko Case) and Ford Pier.
Fans expecting a straight ahead pop album will instead discover songs that are remarkably complex. Although they are still strongly nuanced with pop hooks aplenty (“Who Are You” will linger in your cortex for weeks), they are also littered throughout with a myriad of twists and turns that seep into your psyche. Calder sums it up best....”I didn’t want to give those songs away too easily, I wanted people to wonder what was coming next, where the song was going.” This album defies ANY comparisons to Kathryn’s current association with The New Pornographers as well as her past history with Immaculate Machine. Kathryn has found her own beautifully unique voice… one that is best summed up by the title that she chose for her sophmore release Bright and Vivid.