GRAINNE: Press

Catchy "pop" and "Americana" from this Canadian singer 

This review is from: Looking for Sunshine (Audio CD)

Grainne (pronounced GRAWN-ya) is a Canadian singer songwriter who the press releases say sounds like Lucinda Williams, Joni Mitchell or even a "slightly rebellious Mary Chapin Carpenter". I don't agree. She has her own sound and it's catchy. My favorite tracks (ones with great hooks) are "Colours of You" and the title track - which closes the 10-song album. "Big Yellow Machines" has a full-out big-band sound while the following track - "In Between" - offers a lower-key mood.

She apparantly plays mostly "north of the border" but, like many Canadian "folk" artists she's captuted a lot of the "Americana" sound from Nashville.

I hope you found this review both informative and helpful.

Steve Ramm
"Anything Phonographic

*To purchase Looking For Sunshine via Amazon, click this link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dpopular&field-keywords=Grainne+Looking+For+Sunshine

"As the sky has rediscovered its bright blue hue and the sun has shown itself for a few days, one’s gait picks up a bit. Despite the deluge of snow, salt and cold, spring is becoming a possibility.

Listening to Grainne (pronounced Grawn-ya) Ryan’s first full-length CD further reinforces the notion that spring is nigh. The opening song “Not Enough Love” with its upbeat pace, strong acoustic guitar and hint of pedal steel provides her with the perfect vehicle. Her fresh, clean voice and sunny outlook is nothing derived from a Katrina & The Waves music video. Her outlook is reality-based but, like her music, her message is hopeful and positive. From her musical approach, one imagines Ryan to be sitting around in a rural retreat—feet up, sun on her face and her mind adrift in serious daydreams about what it might take to make the world a better place. She doesn’t pretend to have answers, but she’s happy to pitch pertinent questions.

More band-oriented and less folksy than All the Money, her previous EP release,  Looking For Sunshine appears to sum up her raison d’être. Reminiscent of Lucinda Williams and a slightly rebellious Mary Chapin Carpenter, Ryan’s earthy perspective goes one big step further in that her original compositions are instantly familiar-sounding, hook-laden songs that encourage you to kick up your feet and, in some cases, sing along.

That Moe Berg has produced this release may account for some of this yet, without Moe’s influence, her previous effort has demonstrated her proficiency as a singer and a songwriter. If she seems difficult to entirely pigeonhole, that’s in her favour—she’s clearly grown up with Crosby, Stills & Nash, Neil, Rosanne Cash, Nanci Griffith and, according to her website’s bio, AC/DC. Surrounding herself with great players – specifically “Texas Stew” Crookes (pedal steel), Ali Stead/Moe Berg/Adam Gontier (guitars) and power-hitter Neil Sanderson on drums, she’s confident in taking on the world.

In songs requiring added power, Ryan supplements her vocals with great backup support from (elder sister) Cora Westermann and Travis Berlenbach. Strong harmonies appear to be a secret weapon across these 10 original songs as Westermann provides the perfect accent to Ryan’s clear, fresh voice—a voice which incorporates a hint of country and, at other times, a strong Celtic flavour.

Consider one of the album’s strongest tracks, “Colours Of You”. It begins as a  gentle, folksy piece that adds banjo and harmonies before kicking into a secondary section that strums its way into a distinctly Celtic-sounding, Sandy Denny-esque singalong—one that you can’t stop playing. This buoyant fare is all the more refreshing following the dark, rocking “Under the Blanket”—displaying a love of  being a bit of a rocker, with its searing guitar leads and Sanderson’s pleasing John Bonham impersonation. The song runs a bit out of her range, yet it boasts strong party appeal.

“Big Yellow Machines” is another sturdy composition that carries her position against over-development, blending in a horn section for a twist. Some songs are less effective, less developed. “A Little Time” meanders while “Misunderstood” is guilty of losing itself, as pleasant as it is to listen to. Redemption is found in “In Between”—which sounds like a lost Jayhawks track, Crookes’ pedal steel providing a haunting effect behind Ryan’s soft, yet strong, vocal atop acoustic and electric guitars. “Breathe It In” brings the energy back, full tilt, while a mournful “The Rain” reveals added depth, while demonstrating a grasp of blending country to a more contemporary sound, taking a page out of Emmylou Harris’ book.

All in all, this is a surprisingly sophisticated and accomplished release from an artist who should be better known. There’s little doubt she has a vision for where she’s heading and, given support, she’ll get there. As Ryan reminds us in the closing song and title track, she’ll continue “looking for the sunshine” and the fact that spring is almost here may be the seasonal edge to continue this momentum."

"Not Enough Love

Looking For Sunshine

Grainne Ryan

 

I should get out more. Who knew there was a Durham Region Music Society? With awards and a show and everything. Back in 2009, Grainne Ryan won Folk Artist of the Year. Nice. She is based in Peterborough. This disc, produced by Moe Berg, came out in November. Not Enough Love is a pedal-steel driven, steel-tipped toe tapper. Grainne (for those of you not of an Irish persuasion, it is pronounced Grawnya) has the lows of Sarah Harmer and the highs of Joni Mitchell in her very attractive voice. "Sometimes I just can't hide the way I feel/ When things are clearly not right my words tend to reveal/ the way I feel so here I go again." "

 

 

 

If you're looking for respite for your throbbing temples, Ryan's confident voice and straightforward,rootsy songs are the balm for what ails you. And with songs like the swaggering "Souls and Shoes " (from her debut All The Money ) you'll find yourself recovered, up and dancing in record time."

"GRAINNE RYAN: OTB missed her recent NOW Lounge CD release party, but can certainly recommend the debut seven song EP, All the Money, from this young singer/songwriter. Recorded in part in New York City, it features contributions from such stellar players as CHRIS BROWN (ex BOURBON TABERNACLE CHOIR), JASON MERCER (RON SEXSMITH) and DREW GLACKIN (THE SILOS). Ryan has a pure voice perhaps a little reminiscent of SARAH MCLACHLAN, and her songwriting shows real potential. One to watch. Go to www.grainneryan.com for more info."

Grainne Ryan may be compared to Lucinda Williams a bit for her brand of alt.country/No Depression, but I also hear a bit of Jonatha Brooke in the way Ryan sings and plays guitar. If you want one of those songs that makes a long country drive home seem endless, or perhaps you want to find yourself driving, never wanting to go home, the atmosphere of "Brace Yourself" offers this. The slide guitar (played by Drew Glackin has a similar vibe to how Jerry Garcia played on David Crosby's If I Could Only Remember My Name, and true to the spirit of the song, you almost don't want it to end.

 In a better world, "Brace Yourself", along with songs such as "Tree Frog", "What You Are To Me", and "Unfold" would be getting a lot of airplay and the musicianship of Ryan and her band would be celebrated around the world. I look forward to hearing what she's capable doing on a full length project, and if she isn't signed by a bigger label in 2008, people are missing out on a true talent.”

Grainne Ryan — All the Money (self-released) :: Grainne thanks Neil Young on the back cover for being an inspiration and then transcends him by transforming her multitracked voice into a one-woman Crosby, Stills & Nash. Somebody find this woman a record company — fast.”

"People who love singer-songwriters and the artists mentioned before shouldn’t miss this splendid record.... Conclusion: an absolute must for those who melt, listening to Aimee Mann, Lucinda Williams, Sarah Harmer..................that kind of tender voices with a strong opinion".