KENDL WINTER and the SUMMER GOLD –
IT CAN BE DONE!
2013 – K Records
It is only thanks to facebook that I discovered this uniquely talented singer songwriter who performs in and around hillbilly/country/folk, even at times a little jazziness. Someone posted a piece of video of her performing and as luck would have it her new album was out so I thought I’d get a copy and check her out. I usually only review albums that I’m sent, not out of any misplaced arrogance, but simply because people go to the trouble of sending them to me and I can’t get anywhere near keeping up with them, much less albums that
I’ve purchased on a whim! That should be a measure of just how highly I rate this exceptional talent.
Her vocals have a lovely quirkiness to them that is reminiscent of artists such as Victoria Williams, although Kendl is more melodic, or even at times the twang of Nanci Griffith. When you add her inventive and melodic banjo
virtuosity it becomes clear that this is an artist who has a totally unique and original style. Her roots are certainly in old timey/bluegrass music but she has developed far beyond those, in her case, limiting styles. Kendl has been a very busy lady, having not only her own solo career that with this album now extends to three recordings, but also having been a member of the excellent ‘Blackberry Bushes Stringband’ and with Joe Capoccia (who also plays bass on much of this album) in the also excellent country duo, ‘Southern Skies.’
All eleven songs on the album are Kendl originals, with ‘original’ being the keyword for this hugely talented lady and her music. She not only sings, but is also a tremendous banjo and guitar player, with the already mentioned Joe Capoccia playing bass on some tracks, Derek Johnson on bass on Centrifugal Forces, Ashley Erickson plays cornet on Hands Behind My Back and Kelly Ray Smith is on pedal steel on Black Hole. It would be easy to categorise the album as ‘modern old timey,’ probably accurate in some cases, but there is so much more to this album of songs that in some cases are pretty much generically indefinable, although the haunting, high lonesome ‘Appalachian’ feel is never far away!
The album begins with Rocking Chair, a song that has a tremendous banjo sound on a really good slow but
chugging tale on which her vocals have a lovely quirky twang and a strong atmospheric emphasis, something that is repeated on every song on this tremendous rootsy, sparse album. On Centrifugal Forces, there are some nice harmonies on another quirky song that despite the acoustic instrumentation is of an ‘indeterminate genre.’ Her vocal gives the song a hillbilly/country feel but there is a jazzy undercurrent to the bass and percussion, although her signature banjo sound allied to those vocals probably pushes the song more into the realms of ‘country.’ The title track It Can Be Done is a terrific hard driving song propelled by an incredibly percussive drum sound allied to her
chiming melodic banjo producing what is probably the most powerful sounding song on the album. When you add her melodic style it brings an otherworldly feel to a song that has an unusual structure, and indeed at times to the whole album, making it easy to see how this is the albums title song and helping define Kendl’s originality. Dreaming Of Babylon includes gorgeous female harmonies to go with Kendl’s vocal, banjo and drums on another unusual song that seems to flow through myriad virtually indeterminate styles, but all with her stamp that I’m sure will one day be instantly recognizable to all fans of this widely diverse area of roots music. Album closer Black Hole is another gorgeous song with haunting harmonies, this time a tale that can be classed as a country ballad with the gorgeous steel guitar and of course her banjo driving the song, although this time the steel is dominant.
This is a high quality album of music that whilst very much of the twenty first century, has it’s easily traceable roots that go back to the early days of recorded music and probably way beyond. Kendl Winter is a hugely talented artist with a unique writing and banjo playing style and an appealing and individual vocal style. Give yourself a treat and purchase this album, in fact, buy all of her albums and follow the development of a great talent.
http://www.kendlwinter.com/
It is only thanks to facebook that I discovered this uniquely talented singer songwriter who performs in and around hillbilly/country/folk, even at times a little jazziness. Someone posted a piece of video of her performing and as luck would have it her new album was out so I thought I’d get a copy and check her out. I usually only review albums that I’m sent, not out of any misplaced arrogance, but simply because people go to the trouble of sending them to me and I can’t get anywhere near keeping up with them, much less albums that
I’ve purchased on a whim! That should be a measure of just how highly I rate this exceptional talent.
Her vocals have a lovely quirkiness to them that is reminiscent of artists such as Victoria Williams, although Kendl is more melodic, or even at times the twang of Nanci Griffith. When you add her inventive and melodic banjo
virtuosity it becomes clear that this is an artist who has a totally unique and original style. Her roots are certainly in old timey/bluegrass music but she has developed far beyond those, in her case, limiting styles. Kendl has been a very busy lady, having not only her own solo career that with this album now extends to three recordings, but also having been a member of the excellent ‘Blackberry Bushes Stringband’ and with Joe Capoccia (who also plays bass on much of this album) in the also excellent country duo, ‘Southern Skies.’
All eleven songs on the album are Kendl originals, with ‘original’ being the keyword for this hugely talented lady and her music. She not only sings, but is also a tremendous banjo and guitar player, with the already mentioned Joe Capoccia playing bass on some tracks, Derek Johnson on bass on Centrifugal Forces, Ashley Erickson plays cornet on Hands Behind My Back and Kelly Ray Smith is on pedal steel on Black Hole. It would be easy to categorise the album as ‘modern old timey,’ probably accurate in some cases, but there is so much more to this album of songs that in some cases are pretty much generically indefinable, although the haunting, high lonesome ‘Appalachian’ feel is never far away!
The album begins with Rocking Chair, a song that has a tremendous banjo sound on a really good slow but
chugging tale on which her vocals have a lovely quirky twang and a strong atmospheric emphasis, something that is repeated on every song on this tremendous rootsy, sparse album. On Centrifugal Forces, there are some nice harmonies on another quirky song that despite the acoustic instrumentation is of an ‘indeterminate genre.’ Her vocal gives the song a hillbilly/country feel but there is a jazzy undercurrent to the bass and percussion, although her signature banjo sound allied to those vocals probably pushes the song more into the realms of ‘country.’ The title track It Can Be Done is a terrific hard driving song propelled by an incredibly percussive drum sound allied to her
chiming melodic banjo producing what is probably the most powerful sounding song on the album. When you add her melodic style it brings an otherworldly feel to a song that has an unusual structure, and indeed at times to the whole album, making it easy to see how this is the albums title song and helping define Kendl’s originality. Dreaming Of Babylon includes gorgeous female harmonies to go with Kendl’s vocal, banjo and drums on another unusual song that seems to flow through myriad virtually indeterminate styles, but all with her stamp that I’m sure will one day be instantly recognizable to all fans of this widely diverse area of roots music. Album closer Black Hole is another gorgeous song with haunting harmonies, this time a tale that can be classed as a country ballad with the gorgeous steel guitar and of course her banjo driving the song, although this time the steel is dominant.
This is a high quality album of music that whilst very much of the twenty first century, has it’s easily traceable roots that go back to the early days of recorded music and probably way beyond. Kendl Winter is a hugely talented artist with a unique writing and banjo playing style and an appealing and individual vocal style. Give yourself a treat and purchase this album, in fact, buy all of her albums and follow the development of a great talent.
http://www.kendlwinter.com/