By: Chip McCabe
One of the most genuine ways to discover a new artist is by having another artist you admire turn you on to their work. It’s a beautiful thing to watch and listen to someone who crafts their art with such precision talk about another artist who they share some common, spiritual bond with. 2013 was a banner year for Connecticut’s Dirt Floor Studios and if the new, self-titled album from CT’s own, Kerri Powers, is a harbinger at all then 2014 could be even better.
Powers is the exact definition of Americana. Her music spans the wide pantheon of almost every style of music that is distinctly American. Country, blues, roots rock, it’s all there for the giving and the taking. The album opens with the track “Old Shirt” which has a distinctive Wilco/Son Volt vibe when both bands are doing their best to channel Neil Young. It’s immediately followed by the slide-guitar wielding excellence of “Buttercup” where Powers is suddenly transformed into the bastard child of Lightnin’ Hopkins. This track is immediately followed by “Train In The Night”, which is a heart-string-tugging acoustic ballad. And so it goes for Powers as she deftly dances back and forth through a truly dizzying array styles. Never once does she sound out of place though, and never once do you question her song choices. She’s got a lot to say and a dozen ways to say them. Whether she’s feeling soft and quiet or rambunctious and gritty, Kerri Powers speaks with a voice that simply must be heard.
Powers is something of an anomaly. She’s like the CT music scene’s version of the protagonist in the film, The Natural, having spent the “prime of her career” out of the spotlight (in her case, tending to her family) only to return from absolutely nowhere to wow and amaze. Where Robert Redford made all the fans sit up and cheer with mammoth home runs, Kerri Powers is going to make people listening to this album do the exact same thing with exceptional songwriting and equally exceptional delivery. Some artists write great songs but don’t know what to do with them. Other artists make up for a lack in songwriting ability with great showmanship. Powers is the total package. Whether it’s a blues-soaked number like “Tallulah Send a Car for Me” or a straight country ballad like, “Come Around”, Powers nails every one of these songs. Her voice is a haunting, yet sweet vessel where words drip with pain and honey-soaked experiences and her backing band on this record play it sparse yet potent. Not to mention that her cover of Janis Ian’s “Jesse” gives the original more than a fair run for its money.
This is the first Kerri Powers album in five years. Let’s hope beyond hope we don’t have to wait another five for the next one. Kerri Powers’ self-titled album is available now for purchase through CDBaby.com. You can preview the entire album as it streams over at AirPlay Direct.com.
Lonesome Noise 