Melissa Ferrick
Melissa Ferrick could blow her own horn quite well - a flugelhorn to be exact -
if she chose. Instead, she expresses her creative spirit with an acoustic
guitar. Since the early 1990s, the accomplished singer-songwriter from
New England has compiled a solid string of sonically strong, lyrically rich
studio albums.
Often described as folk singer, Ferrick's inspiration flows
from a love of rock..n' roll. During her impassioned live performances for
instance, she'll occasionally crack out a Zeppelin-style riff or tinker with a
little Red Hot Chili Peppers vocal improvisation. These touches however, only
sharpen the intensity of her wildly popular live shows.
Ferrick ranks among
an elite group of female guitarists who'll brave the stage alone, and leave it
with the house cheering for more.
Some of the biggest names in
folk-rock-pop music, such as Ani DiFranco, PJ Harvey, Neko Case and Liz Phair,
have tackled standing under the spotlight alone at one time or another during
their illustrious careers. The same can be said for Ferrick _ except for one
notable difference. She has made it something of a signature to go before her
audiences armed with only her guitar and a set list. Since the end of her "Eyes
of Strangers" tour in mid 2007, for example, Ferrick has taken to the stage
solo, headlining and playing countless venues coast to coast for more than a
year.
With the release of "Goodbye Youth,"
Ferrick's fan base and will certainly continue to expand, and fuel the
enthusiasm for her music-and further drive the passion she brings to her live
shows.
Crys Matthews
Crys Matthews returns to OUT/LOUD this year. Offering an eclectic blend of funk, blues and jazz singer/songwriter, she brings a refreshing new sub-genre to Neo-Soul. With influences ranging from Otis Redding all the way to Ani DiFranco and having been compared to artists as diverse in sound and style as Jill Scott and Tracey Chapman it's no wonder there isn't a box large enough to encompass what she likes to call FuBlueJazz.
A self-proclaimed old soul, the southeastern North Carolina native first popped onto the local music scene in Boone, NC in 1999 as a vocalist/keyboardist with the band Half & Half before breaking out with her own solo career. Since then she has been a permanent fixture at venues like Caribbean Cafe, Jimmy's Java, Cafe Portofino, and Higher Grounds.
"Music has always been a part of my life -- even before I actually took my first breath," she says. The daughter of a preacher, the 26-year-old admits that gospel music was her first love. "I'm always amazed at how much true soul music sounds like what I grew up listening to in church when I was a little girl," she says. That gospel influence is very evident throughout her own music, especially in the track she often refers to as, 'a love-letter for any one who has ever had to leave someone,' 2,000 Miles.
The rest of the album is as diverse as her influences. "Cant Run Away from Love" shows off her jazz influence and simultaneously introduces her audience to her skill level on the keys. The title track for her debut album, "This is No Poem," offers an intimate look at what is a quintessential element in the blues -- living hard and loving harder. That Bohemian naivety, the notion that love will always make everything OK, is what a lot of the record is about. "My mom always said, it doesnt matter what you're going through or how bad you think things are -- as long as you know somebody somewhere loves you, chances are everything is going to be just fine."
With a fan base that continues to widen and a second album slated for release in the spring, it seems that things are indeed going to be more than fine for this artist.
http://www.myspace.com/crysmatthews
Athens Boys Chior
Ok, the name Athens Boys Choir can be a bit deceiving but you can’t blame a Jewish Transsexual man living in the Deep South for having a sense of humor about the whole ordeal. So Katz, the Choir’s now solo member, travels the country speaking “the good word” throwing down hard hitting spokenword that deals with issues of Gender, Politics, Love, Sex, and everything in-between including but not limited to spooning.
Katz’s spokenword is raw, unapologetic, witty, and soulful. As Out Magazine wrote in 2006, “Katz avoids falling into the common spoken-word trap…and instead uses engaging wordplay, razor-sharp wit, and hip-hop rhythms.” He has had the honor of sharing the stage with such artists as Ani Difranco, Indigo Girls, Bitch, The Butchies, Danielle Howle, and Michelle Malone. He has also opened for poets of HBO’s Def Poetry Jam on more than one occasion.
Being a out Transsexual, Katz’s spoken-word often becomes a platform for education and activism, but all work and no play makes for one intense performance so he lets loose with sarcasm, pop culture references, and video’s featuring Barbara Streisand as Yentl and sassy footwork by the stars of the 1979 hit “Roller Boogie.” Interested in Booking the Athens Boys Choir in your town? Email Katz at athensboyschoir@yahoo.com. ABC also provides Trans workshops and class talks along with performances to Colleges and Universities...if this peeks you interest write to the above email for a swift an enthusiastic response.
http://www.athensboyschoir.com/
www.myspace.com/athensboyschoir
Katastrophe
Katastrophe (aka rocco kayiatos) is an up-and-coming, genre-busting, emo-hop mc, whose stunning lyrical skills merge with beats that slide from slick to raw to solid to eccentric, creating a sonic otherworld that snags you in a dance-trance while teasing your head with rhymes that snap, pop and educate.
With a background of slam poetry, (katastrophe was a featured youth slam performer in the acclaimed documentary poetic license), katastrophe's mc delivery veers from clever machine gun rat-a-tat to hypnotic emotional rhythm, and on his heavily anticipated second release, fault, lies, and faultlines, explores new melody.
Recently crowned producer of the year by out music awards, katastrophe's beats rev and surprise, inspired by the grime craze and emo scene as well as both traditional and underground hip hop. a hybrid sound that challenges genre, katastrophe fills his layered beats with lyics that rif on pop culture, slide into personal revelation, call bullshit on contemporary culture, offer a ragged hope for revolution and flirt with a pretty girl on the dance floor, all in the course of a song.
Using his struggle as a trans man and his contested place in contemporary queer and hip hop culture as a springboard to discuss and express larger issues of community, space, privelege, sex and self-worth, katastrophe occupies a singular place in the music underground — brainy and playful, defying genre, keeping listeners on their toes with lyrics that hook and beats that set you moving.
Already an underground sensation thanks to years touring with performers such as sister spit and schaeffer the dark lord, katastrophe is a prominent artist in the feature-length documentary pick up the mic: the (r)evolution of queer hip hop, which premiered to great acclaim at the 2005 toronto international film festival. his live shows are explosions of wild energy and charm, flirtation and intensity that transfix and inspire. watch for him in your hometown.
http://www.myspace.com/katastropherap
Virginia Cohn
In the early 90's Virginia Cohen released two recordings, "Moving Into Indigo" and "684 South June Street" which received airplay on KLCC, KRVM and KWVA. She performed at coffe houses, benefits, colleges and univerisities, as well as the Eugene Celebration and the Willamette Valley Folk Festival. In 1992, she opened for Ani Difranco at the University of Oregon.
You can catch her live radio broadcast "The Front Porch Revue" on KLCC from 3:30-5:00pm on Sunday afternoons every four to six weeks. She plays originals and covers backed by a band called The Porch Band. She is thrilled to be a part of OUT/LOUD this year.