nEw sHoes

 

In yet another new section ( getting like The Guardian on a Saturday..not) we are proud to present new acts worthy of your three minute attention span. Ok so I'm just copying 'Mojo Rising' but what more can a poor boy do .... both have recently visited these damp and windy isles and hopefully will be returning soon.

 

  kAte jacOBs

Presently residing in Hoboken, New Jersey, where she spends a good deal of her time tending her garden through the ravages of the weather, Kate Jacobs is a talented singer-songwriter whose terms of reference go way beyond the usual. On a recent visit she presented a stunning solo acoustic set despite the burden of a good old fashioned English cold! She brought a storybook with her full of autobiographical and family inspired songs that brought to mind Iris Dement in their concision and the purity of her voice. However trying to pin down Jacobs art is difficult as she is as likely to sing about Russian poets, wrecked cars, T.B. wards and the Spanish Civil War as the more usual staples of the american songwriters craft. As well as presenting material from latest disc 'hydrangea' which contained the more 'historical' songs including the wonderful 'Eddy went to Spain' she also revealed the depth her back catalogue.

So far she has released three discs. The first 'The calm comes after' 1993 came about after Kate traded in a background in ballet for an acoustic guitar to " see about the songs in my head". Those songs came out of a life that started in Virginia before being tranplanted to Europe. Second disc 'What about regret' from 1995 seems to be well worth seeking out going by some of the beautiful country travelogue songs she presented live. A song about a field full of old cars really stuck in the memory.

Dave Schramm, Vicky Peterson and Susan Cowsill as well as former Db-er Peter Holsapple assisted in the making of 'Hydrangea'. This disc betrays the pop history of these participants. To my mind it is selection of strong songs that would have been better presented straight as in her live performance. The backings tend toward the over-produced. For somebody as obviously talented as Kate the necessity to gild the lily with the minimum of decoration would in my opinion pay off handsomely. Having said that the afore-mentioned 'Eddy's Gone to Spain' survives the production which sometimes swamps her delicate voice as does the jolly 'Hope is a weed' . If you're any kind of fan of interesting country/ pop crossover in the manner of The Mary Janes then you should check this disc out. I look forward to her next spin around these islands and hope that the band lets her voice flower not wilt because it's one of the best things I've heard in this Oxfordshire garden all year.

miLa dRumKe

Just like buses Oxford, England has no gigs of noteworthy new singer-songwriters for ages and then two come along in quick sucession! Not a week before Kate Jacobs's stunning set Mila Drumke traded in her usual haunts of The Bottom Line and The Mercury Lounge for Oxford's rather quiet Northgate Hall. She also displayed a personal and literate take on the gentle art of songwriting. An immediate stand-out was the short 'Illinois' album opener 'Super 8' which although under 1½ minutes long creates a vivid picture much in the manner of Loudon Wainwright's 'Pictures on the piano' with its atmospheric creation of a small moment in suburban time. More used to the power of a full rock band which includes Patti Smith Band stalwart Tony Shanahan on bass her acoustic set was accomplished and often stunning in both the quality and sheer power of her voice. Both her discs to date - 1994's 'Gathering my Name' and the 1997 'Illinois' have been released via her own 'Little Pro Records'. Again a shining example of the self release/ website initiative bringing an artist of quality to our attention. Expect a full 'Illinois' review in the not too distant future and hopefully a visit with her full band..

Mila's acoustic tour had been supported by London based label Evensong who will be providing a free CD in collaboration with the fine people at Hearsay Magazine in the near future and will include a Mila track along with ones from the Innocence Mission and others. ( see LINKS page).