Erin McKeown
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Erin McKeown | |
|---|---|
 McKeown in August 2008.
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| Background information | |
| Genre(s) | Alternative rock Indie rock Indie Pop Folk Jazz |
| Label(s) | TVP Records Nettwerk Records |
| Website | erinmckeown.com |
Erin McKeown (born October 15, 1977) is a multi-instrumentalist and folk-rock singer/songwriter.
McKeown began her career in the folk scene. She released her first album, Monday Morning Cold, on her own label (TVP Records), travelling throughout New England while still a student at Brown University in order to promote the record. Although she had begun studying ornithology, she graduated from Brown with a degree in ethnomusicology.
McKeown's music is difficult to categorize in terms of genre; it has touched upon pop, swing, rock, folk, and electronic music, as well as many other genres. Mckeown cites The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as an influence on her music.[1]
The Philadelphia Weekly recently described McKeown's music, saying:
More singer-songwriters should follow the lead of Erin McKeown, the kooky songbird who's proved both playful and daring throughout her career. With a lilting delivery and chameleonic instrumentation, she even slipped into French for "Coucou," a gem off her unlikely standards album Sing You Sinners. But with McKeown, is anything really unlikely?
McKeown continues to perform regularly, spending much of her time touring throughout the world with artists such as Ani DiFranco, Josh Ritter, the Indigo Girls, Martin Sexton, Andrew Bird, Thea Gilmore, Melissa Ferrick, Allison Miller (drummer), and others. McKeown also took part in Queerstock, a music festival dedicated to promoting LGBT musicians.[2]
Early in her career, she also collaborated with Beth Amsel, Jess Klein, and Rose Polenzani; the four of them performed as Voices on the Verge.
McKeown's 2005 album, We Will Become Like Birds (produced by Tucker Martine), served as a departure from her earlier work, with a more rock-oriented sound. At a September 1, 2008, concert at The Gravity Lounge in Charlottesville, Virginia, McKeown told the audience that she wrote this album "in an attempt to write myself out of the worst heartache I'd experienced up to that point."
Her latest studio release, Sing You Sinners, was released in Europe on the 23 October 2006 and in the United States on January 9, 2007 by Nettwerk Records LLC. It consists mostly of covers of jazz standards from the 1920s through 1950s.
The next record to be released is a as-yet unnamed album of original music, which will be released in 2009.[3] McKeown is also currently member of an unsigned band known as "emma", which she created with her friend Allison Miller (drummer).[4] McKeown has plans to write a book of poetry. [5]
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[edit] Trivia
McKeown is noted for her energetic stage presence and her habit of wearing tailored suits, often with ties and sneakers, to performances.
She grew up in Virginia, and now lives in Massachusetts.
[edit] Discography
- Monday Morning Cold (TVP Records) (1999)
- Distillation (Signature Sounds) (2000)
- Grand (Nettwerk Records) (2003)
- We Will Become Like Birds (Nettwerk Records) (2005)
- Sing You Sinners (Nettwerk Records) (2006)
- Lafayette (Live) (Signature Sounds) (2007)
- Small Deviant Things, vol.1 (TVP Records) (2008)
[edit] References
- ^ interview in Lesbilicious magazine
- ^ Queerstock: Who's played
- ^ interview in Lesbilicious magazine
- ^ emma on MySpace Music
- ^ interview in Lesbilicious magazine
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Erin McKeown |
- Official home page
- Washington Post review of We Will Become Like Birds
- Interview with Erin McKeown - small WORLD Podcast 2006
- Erin McKeown on Whole Wheat Radio
- Erin McKeown's April 2006 Daytrotter Recording Session
- http://www.daytrotter.com/article/37/free-songs-erin-mckeown
- Interview with Erin McKeown - Lesbilicious Magazine 2008
