tom waits, gillian welch & david rawlings, myshkin's ruby warblers, kreg viesselman, mike west & truckstop honeymoon, bjork, marc ribot, beck, randy newman, georges brassens, nick drake, boo hewerdine, brad leftwich, django reinhart, george crumb, julian gaskell, john hartford, john martyn, johnny cash, olivier messiaen, spaghetti westerns, jim jarmusch, jack kerouac, harry partch, jacques brel, iron and wine...
'the rich can become globetrotters, but those who have no money become hobos' - boxcar bertha
Sounds Like
a foot-stompin', porch rockin', banjo-dappled carny shuffle.
here's the word on the street regarding 'the kansas sessions' :
'if you're unfamiliar with kirsty mcgee and you don't read the small print (boo hewerdine, capercaillie, karine polwart etc.), you'd never guess she hails from this side of the atlantic. the kansas sessions is sheer, banjo-dominated americana from its tom waits-like washboard blowouts (no less than three musicians are credited with 'junk') to its clarinet soliloquies, recorded at the evocatively named ninth ward pickin' parlour in lawrence, KS. no surprise that a maverick review cites the coen brothers, and there's certainly enough of the offbeat in the restless tempos and illicit still-cum-dixieland arrangements to justify that.
mcgee can neo-yodel with the best of them (check out opener bonecrusher), yet there's also, in the sensuous, deliberate turn of her phrase and her bare-bulb lyrics, a hint of an anglophone lhasa or even madeleine peyroux, and it's through clarinet-whispering ballads like sandman which she really inhabits her brand of waymarked noir.' - HMV
‘the kansas sessions is full of beautifully produced, immediately accessible, joyously engaging music that, like a carnival barker, draws you inside to take a closer look at the disturbing, the weird and the wonderful. if it was a film, it would be a coen brothers' film, full of startlingly arresting images, visual grace and impossibly cool moments of rich, dark humour.’ - maverick
bonecrusher
pre-order the kansas sessions and buy our other music here, or click on the button below for your copy of the new album.
A maker of delicate yet stubborn songs, an instinctive traveller, a human scrapbook. Years spent as a hitchhiker and a period of homelessness have enriched her knowledge of people and places, all whilst keeping her moving. After spending a while building tree houses and bagging-out earth from tunnels at road protest camps Kirsty sold all her possessions and hitched to Cornwall where she lived in a beach hut and learnt to fingerpick.
Her affinity with a life of perpetual movement and a hand-to-mouth existence has made its mark on her songs in a manner reminiscent of Jack Kerouac and the 'beat' generation, and has made her music difficult to classify. She has been variously described as producing 'folk noir' and 'hobopop', and she and Mat were described in Maverick magazine as 'Simon and Garfunkel : the Tim Burton version.'
Her studio albums have attracted collaborations with some of the most important names in the scene, such as producers John Wood (Honeysuckle, 2002), Boo Hewerdine (Frost, 2004), and Neill MacColl (Two Birds, 2006).
Her albums are recorded live in the studio, her shows are simple and direct, and much of her work has been made using the instruments she has built herself.
The evolution of her work is set to continue in still closer collaboration with multi-instrumentalist and musical partner mat martin. A fourth studio album planned for 2008 promises to encapsulate the hobopop style in a new collection of simple, edgy songs played on traditional American instruments. The combination of English literary songwriting and American influence recorded in an open and direct way has already proved a winning formula.
'shivering, hollering, edgy, dark, delightful, disturbing, involving, beautifully phrased acoustic music' - the living tradition
'perfect understatement - not an extraneous word or note' - karine polwart
'absolutely superb, memorable... i love her songs, i love her way' - bob harris
Just wanted to let you know that our debut album, InSight, is now finished and set to be released June 27. You can already pre-listen to a few of the tracks only here on myspace! Also, check out our video for the song Down, down, down.
Hello, it's me, Ruby Jane.To those who don't know me, I am a 14 year old fiddler, songwriter. I have some songs posted that are fresh out of the studio. Let me know if you like the new songs..be one of the first to hear, even before they are released!Thanks! new videos too! Ruby Jane
Nice one Kirsty. Great to be a new Broadstairs friend. Will see you on the 11th in the Marquee, if we can get away from the Pavillion Gardens. Have a good one. Appreciatively, Keef.
Hi there! It was great having you on the radio prog on Saturday. I've had lots of great comments about you and hope to play "The Profit Song" (my fave off the album) on saturday. Regards to Matt and keep in touch.
What's worse than a pie in the face? A pie in the face that's been laced with arsenic. We think you're tops. Swing by for a complimentary mp3 download!
