1998 Brings the release of Martha Schuyler Thompson's much anticipated new
album entitled, Road Kill. This powerful collection of twelve songs can
best be described as a celebration of American vernacular music since
throughout this endeavor, Thompson draws on her experience of having lived
in the middle west and western sates by utilizing that which is endemic to
those particular regions or locales in the making of this art form. In the
creation of most American vernacular forms, the artist is often a local
craftsperson prone to improvising on the traditions, methods and tastes
common to a given place. It is those tastes, sensibilities, rituals and
characteristics shared by individuals from a certain area that dictate the
difference between what is genuine from that of artifice in the vernacular.
As a lyricist, Thompson is a keen observer with a wry sense of humor who
painstakingly records those subtleties, nuances and characteristics that
distinguish a particular place and it's people as they face radical shifts
and changes brought on by life in the modern world. The lyrics pay tribute
to the speech patterns, stock phrasing or dialects found in various
regional pockets of the country while the diverse stylistic musical
elements explored in this comprehensive collection honor Thompson's own
root influences (early American folk, gospel, blues, country, the music of
Eastern Europe & Latin culture, and a gentle but hilarious infusion of the
Motown spirit which she seems to have absorbed along the way). Road Kill
is a genuine body of work that honestly depicts the poignant juxtaposition
of a changing -- yet timeless -- people set against a backdrop of the
American landscape.
Road Kill kicks off with the bouncy r&b inflected, "All Right Without You"
and moves directly into the upbeat, "A Heart That's True" accentuating the
unique percussive elements in both, the conversational delivery and the
instrumentation. Things slow down for the evocative, "Casting My Net"
compelling us to enter a Celtic soundscape. "I Have Been There Before" is
a gospel influenced ballad delivered in a powerful, yet achingly vulnerable
manner. Out of an Eastern European folk tradition comes, "Piece Work."
The humorous title track, "Road Kill" reveals that life is messy in a raw
and gritty country blues style featuring Thompson's characteristic dynamic
vocal distortion, some great fiddling, slide guitar and assorted auto parts
utilized innovatively as percussion. Fading in after the title track is
the haunting and spare, "Waterjar Girl" (which highlights some of
Thompson's trademark rhythmic sensibilities) followed by the incredibly
buoyant cautionary tale, "Gravity." The album then takes a detour to a
prairie soundscape for two tunes, "The Wild Grasses" (possessing an almost
hymn-like quality) and "Prairie Schooner." The jazzy, "Thirst For Life"
segues nicely into the final track, "Shake It" -- a Latin dance tune
examining both, friendship and dementia. The arrangement and production of
the album are at once slick, and humble in order to best showcase
Thompson's diverse musical influences and lyric sensibilities.
Road Kill features the following musicians: Hollis Taylor (composer & Old
Time Fiddle Champion whose playing is featured in two Gus Van Sant films,
My Own Private Idaho & Even Cowgirls Get The Blues) on violin; George
Mitchell (18-year veteran of the Diana Ross Band) on keyboards; Warren Rand
(Robert Cray Band, Albert King) on saxophone; Gordon Rencher (member-Eugene
Symphony, Third Angle percussion quartet, principal percussionist-Oregon
Ballet Theater & Festival of American Music) on drums & percussion; Brian
"Pope" Casey on bass; and Martha Schuyler Thompson on lead & backing
vocals, vocal distortion, and all guitar & slide parts.
Peter Hay of Twin Vision Ltd. will be promoting the album to radio over the
next couple of months. Let us know if your station has any questions
regarding service. Please forgive the cross-post!
Cottage Industry Music
http://www.teleport.com/~msthomps/