DANNI NICHOLLS – A LITTLE REDEMPTION
2013 - Self Released
I’ve seen Danni perform live on numerous occasions over the last few years and unlike many ‘stars’ her vocal abilities are as good live as they are on recordings. Something that should be a given, but I can’t count the times that I’ve enjoyed an album only to be disappointed when seeing the artists live performance. Maybe they were just off colour but often it is because everything is balanced in the studio to help the vocals and perhaps they are unable to match that quality when the ‘chips are down.’ That is something Danni doesn’t need to worry about thanks to her classic ‘country’ (and much more!) voice that she uses to project her tremendous alt. country songs, a genre that fits her like a glove in spite of her ability to manipulate various styles to suit herself! In many ways she reminds me of Rosanne Cash but with her very own sense of style and individuality not just in her vocals but also in her tremendous, high quality songwriting.
Danni has previously released just two e.ps, 2009s ‘Heavy Shoes’ and this years ‘Time’ both of which are of an extraordinary high quality, so can this, her debut album match that quality? You bet it can, and then some! Every song on this gorgeous album is a real treat for those who like great writing, singing and performances. The album was actually recorded in Nashville and is proof if needed that Nashville is capable of making albums that are not sanitized or bland. She doesn’t seem to have the need to dress her songs up with a full string orchestra and I certainly can’t imagine she would want to play a gig in a sequined gown! The album was produced by Chris
Donohue who has worked with Emmylou Harris and The Civil Wars as well as Robert Plant and includes artists of the caliber of Al Perkins whose list of credits is almost infinite but includes Bob Dylan, the Eagles, Dolly Parton and the Rolling Stones amongst many others and Steve Fishell another man with a huge list of credits including Albert Lee, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and Linda Ronstadt. Of the songs, four were co-writes with other people, and five written entirely by Danni, plus a gorgeous cover of Will Kimbrough's Goodnight Moon.
There is always a lovely feminine sensuality to Danni’s vocals that allows her to move from mid tempo country rock to slow moody ballads and even into a jazziness that I hadn’t noticed before. She brings dynamism to everything she sings even on the slow moody ballads, a sure sign of a quality singer who knows her own voice and has total control over it, an ability that surprisingly few other singers seem to share. Depending on the needs of a song she can move from an almost ‘girlie’innocence to a strong ‘woman of the world’ sensuality, sometimes within the bounds of the same song!
The album opens with the slow, sultry ballad First Cuckoo Of Spring, with lovely chiming guitars and a slightly eerie atmosphere that immediately lets the listener know that this is not a run of the mill country artist, with her achingly evocative vocals dominating and driving this beautiful song. At first I couldn’t work it out, but in some ways the song bears comparison with an artist such as the also hugely talented Rachel Brooke with it’s originality that sit’s the artist within the ‘country’ genre but well apart from the mainstream. Danni has more stylistic diversity than Rachel but would probably still be comfortable under an umbrella of similar design! There is an immediate brightening of the atmosphere following that tremendous opener with Danni’s lovely breathy vocal
accompanied by some nice percussion and dobro playing on the upbeat mid tempo country rock of Hey There Sunshine, a song that really gets the foot tapping and if it doesn’t, you need to check your pulse. This is followed by the slow moodiness of Bird Of Paradise with Danni’s evocative vocals accompanied by plinking banjo, melodic electric guitar and with a gorgeous steel guitar in the background giving an unusual, almost otherworldly feel to a lovely song. Beautiful Game is a tremendous jazzy blues song with piano, cornet and a nice moody feeling that brings an exceptional diversity to proceedings with Danni’s vocal being totally at home within this stylistic variety. Other songs do include a jazzy feel but blended with other styles. Finally on this album that really makes it almost impossible to pick highlights, such is the quality of every song, the title track A Little Redemption, should be mentioned for it’s lovely sparse feel, with Danni’s breathy vocal being supported by acoustic guitar, a little percussion and a gorgeous chiming mandolin, all accompanied by some beautiful harmonies.
This really is an exceptional album by someone who has tremendous musical talent as a singer songwriter and who really deserves to be heard by a huge audience. Her ability to bring a great depth of feeling to every song she sings, irrespective of generic boundaries, something that she pretty much ignores anyway, is yet another example of her talent, and yet despite that diversity she can still be considered to be an artist steeped in the edgier side of country music. Buy the album and find out for yourself what a true artist can achieve.
http://www.reverbnation.com/danninicholls
Please Note: The album is due for release on 1st July 2013 so get your order in now at:
www.danninicholls.com
I’ve seen Danni perform live on numerous occasions over the last few years and unlike many ‘stars’ her vocal abilities are as good live as they are on recordings. Something that should be a given, but I can’t count the times that I’ve enjoyed an album only to be disappointed when seeing the artists live performance. Maybe they were just off colour but often it is because everything is balanced in the studio to help the vocals and perhaps they are unable to match that quality when the ‘chips are down.’ That is something Danni doesn’t need to worry about thanks to her classic ‘country’ (and much more!) voice that she uses to project her tremendous alt. country songs, a genre that fits her like a glove in spite of her ability to manipulate various styles to suit herself! In many ways she reminds me of Rosanne Cash but with her very own sense of style and individuality not just in her vocals but also in her tremendous, high quality songwriting.
Danni has previously released just two e.ps, 2009s ‘Heavy Shoes’ and this years ‘Time’ both of which are of an extraordinary high quality, so can this, her debut album match that quality? You bet it can, and then some! Every song on this gorgeous album is a real treat for those who like great writing, singing and performances. The album was actually recorded in Nashville and is proof if needed that Nashville is capable of making albums that are not sanitized or bland. She doesn’t seem to have the need to dress her songs up with a full string orchestra and I certainly can’t imagine she would want to play a gig in a sequined gown! The album was produced by Chris
Donohue who has worked with Emmylou Harris and The Civil Wars as well as Robert Plant and includes artists of the caliber of Al Perkins whose list of credits is almost infinite but includes Bob Dylan, the Eagles, Dolly Parton and the Rolling Stones amongst many others and Steve Fishell another man with a huge list of credits including Albert Lee, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and Linda Ronstadt. Of the songs, four were co-writes with other people, and five written entirely by Danni, plus a gorgeous cover of Will Kimbrough's Goodnight Moon.
There is always a lovely feminine sensuality to Danni’s vocals that allows her to move from mid tempo country rock to slow moody ballads and even into a jazziness that I hadn’t noticed before. She brings dynamism to everything she sings even on the slow moody ballads, a sure sign of a quality singer who knows her own voice and has total control over it, an ability that surprisingly few other singers seem to share. Depending on the needs of a song she can move from an almost ‘girlie’innocence to a strong ‘woman of the world’ sensuality, sometimes within the bounds of the same song!
The album opens with the slow, sultry ballad First Cuckoo Of Spring, with lovely chiming guitars and a slightly eerie atmosphere that immediately lets the listener know that this is not a run of the mill country artist, with her achingly evocative vocals dominating and driving this beautiful song. At first I couldn’t work it out, but in some ways the song bears comparison with an artist such as the also hugely talented Rachel Brooke with it’s originality that sit’s the artist within the ‘country’ genre but well apart from the mainstream. Danni has more stylistic diversity than Rachel but would probably still be comfortable under an umbrella of similar design! There is an immediate brightening of the atmosphere following that tremendous opener with Danni’s lovely breathy vocal
accompanied by some nice percussion and dobro playing on the upbeat mid tempo country rock of Hey There Sunshine, a song that really gets the foot tapping and if it doesn’t, you need to check your pulse. This is followed by the slow moodiness of Bird Of Paradise with Danni’s evocative vocals accompanied by plinking banjo, melodic electric guitar and with a gorgeous steel guitar in the background giving an unusual, almost otherworldly feel to a lovely song. Beautiful Game is a tremendous jazzy blues song with piano, cornet and a nice moody feeling that brings an exceptional diversity to proceedings with Danni’s vocal being totally at home within this stylistic variety. Other songs do include a jazzy feel but blended with other styles. Finally on this album that really makes it almost impossible to pick highlights, such is the quality of every song, the title track A Little Redemption, should be mentioned for it’s lovely sparse feel, with Danni’s breathy vocal being supported by acoustic guitar, a little percussion and a gorgeous chiming mandolin, all accompanied by some beautiful harmonies.
This really is an exceptional album by someone who has tremendous musical talent as a singer songwriter and who really deserves to be heard by a huge audience. Her ability to bring a great depth of feeling to every song she sings, irrespective of generic boundaries, something that she pretty much ignores anyway, is yet another example of her talent, and yet despite that diversity she can still be considered to be an artist steeped in the edgier side of country music. Buy the album and find out for yourself what a true artist can achieve.
http://www.reverbnation.com/danninicholls
Please Note: The album is due for release on 1st July 2013 so get your order in now at:
www.danninicholls.com