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Rykarda Parasol: vocals, guitar, and piano... Some of the performers who appear with Rykarda on stage are: Greg Benitz (guitar/keys), Brian Gregory (bass & vocals), and Nick Ott (drums). Robert Marzio (drums), Jacob Fury (violin), Adam Aaronson (drums), Keven Tecon (vocals), Anne Sullivan (violin), and Rachel Hoiem (piano/keyboard) have also appeared with Rykarda in the past few years.

Like Duende! Like a real woman amidst smoke and whiskey. Like Edith Piaf meets the Animals. Like Nico meets Nick Cave. Like Serge Gainsbourg's cigarette in Deitrich's mouth. Never in sunlight and not without pain and wit. From the feet and not the throat.

PRESS & REVIEWS:

"The Lady to Watch": .And while her name might make you think of an umbrella, her music will inspire slightly more complex imagery. Rykarda Parasol plays what sounds like gothic jazz - dark and smooth, with a touch of whimsical Americana and chamber pop. Her voice draws an easy comparison to Nico in the days of the Velvet Underground or PJ Harvey circa anytime, but with a lighter edge and range of sound. In a way, Rycarda Parasol blends Tom Waits' noir tendencies with Nick Cave's stinging rock, but maintains uniqueness with the fact that she's, you know, female." - The Deli Magazine

"In the lazy, hazy tradition of fellow salvation shucksters Nick Cave and Siouxie Sioux, singer Rykarda Parasol leads this fourpiece from Frisco, delivering a smoky, gin-tinged salve to soothe the souls of the wicked, like Opal, OP8, and opium combined." - Austin Chronicle, SXSW Picks.

"A genuine musical force in her own right with a Harvey-laced smokiness to her voice, Parasol weaves gothic, bluesy tales of desire and strength, compassion and solitude. She's just what I need." - San Francisco Bay Guardian.

“Setting the scene and building up a mood is Rykarda Parasol’s specialty. Her voice will wrap around you like a blanket of shadows and give you goose bumps as you proceed further into the depths of the album. So turn off the lights, turn up the volume, and get ready for a complete cinematic experience." - Delusions of Adequacy

Highly Recommended: “A sexy woman with an exotic name. Rykarda Parasol could've stopped right there and I would've been sold. But nooo, she had to throw in her amazing voice too. The sound of Rykarda Parasol can be compared to Johnny Cash, Igmar Bergman and contemporaries like Cat Power and Bat For Lashes. It's Southern Gothic meets Southern Baptist with a stinging shot of Nick Cave for good measure. Perfect music for the approaching winter. Buy the full-length album, and wrap yourself in your Rykarda's warm voice, like a blanket. Oh so good." - The Walrus

Rolling Stone, Jan. 2008, Germany, 3.5 stars

5 stars. Undisputed Album of the Year! ***** Westzeit, Germany

"With Jim Jarmusch-esque musical imagery: Reverb-dripping whammy-bar leads anchor saloon-piano vignettes, all cemented by Parasol's sinister vocals. Her rustic croon (the female counterpoint to a broodier Nick Cave) sounds as if it could crumble under the weight of its own vulnerability; it's less the focal point for lyrical profundity as it is the lead instrument in her catalog. When live with the potent Tower Ravens, Rykarda Parasol employs only as much enthusiasm as it would take to roust a crew of zombies at a cemetery set—gravely gothic and extremely good." - The Portland Mercury, Portland Oregon.

"En parfaite disciple de Nick Cave, elle nous envoie en pleine figure ce "How Does a Woman Fall?". Les percussions sont d'une sobriété sans pareille, un peu d'accordéon et de Theremin assure l'ambiance. "En Route" permet au piano de se remettre en valeur soutenant le chant habité de notre vedette. "Lonesome Place" sera plus léger avec un côté Velvet Underground bien marqué. La chanson est basée sur un poème de Langston Hughes." - Music in Belgium, Belgium.

"I love this album. Really, I don't even want to write anymore than that - just leave you all hanging, so that you would always wonder and then make yourself go and listen to it. Rykarda Parasol is the throaty singer-songwriter at the front of this folk/goth act... The stories that these songs tell take you into places and situations that you don't want to be in, or would be uncomfortable in. Dark, brooding, haunting, ambient and intelligent - that's how I want to sum up this one." - Two Way Monologue.

“If Nick Cave had a uterus and was impregnated by Johnny Cash, Rykarda Parasol would be their talented daughter with the low voice." - Crawdaddy

"There’s an icy Nordic grandeur in Parasol’s look, a sense of desolation and windswept tundra that’s led more than one reviewer to envision her as a reincarnation of a 1920s nightclub act. But Parasol’s voice is more gritty than sultry, more Nick Cave than Helen Kane. Parasol’s mother was a moody ex-patriot Swede and her father a Holocaust survivor, so her affinity for darker music sometimes seems almost genetic." - Synthesis, Chico, CA.

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New Album:
"For Blood and Wine"
by Rykarda Parasol

Available of Amazon and iTunes

Rykarda Parasol
"Hannah Leah" (mp3)
from "Our Hearts First Meet"
(Three Ring Records)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Rhapsody
Buy at Napster
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Amazon
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Germany, Glitterhouse

Poland, Gusstaff

UK, Amazon

France, Amazon
More On This Album

Here She Comes... Rykarda Parasol
"Of Thunder and Light" (mp3)
from "Here She Comes"
(Three Ring Records)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at Napster
Buy at Rhapsody
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at mTraks Download
More On This Album