Rita Hosking
Tickets: $20 advance, $24 at the door.
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Kitchen tables, springs, loss, miners, mountains, culture clash, trailers, stray dogs, loggers, hope, forest fires—Rita Hosking‘s country-folk music is this and more, and always fierce and lovely. Her delivery is, to put it simply, intense. “From the first time I heard Rita sing, her voice gripped me and did not let go,” (Joe Craven.)
That voice, called a “soulful howl from the mountains” (California Bluegrass Association) is calling attention around the country—”What? California girls don’t sing like that!!?” But Rita, called “the real thing” by CA acoustic music fans, will tell you about her upbringing in rural Shasta County, and the old-time band of seasoned mountain characters that took her under their wings. “This California girl comes by her mountain-music sensibility with true authenticity, with original songs deeply rooted in her family’s frontier experience,” (Dan Ruby, FestivalPreview.com.) A descendant of Cornish miners who sang in the mines, Rita grew up with deep regard for folk music and the power of the voice.
Rita’s songs have been lauded for story and sense of place, and her performances praised for capturing the audience. Honors include winner of Best Country Album (Vox Pop) in the 2010 Independent Music Awards, winner of the ’08 Dave Carter Memorial Songwriting Contest at the Sisters Folk Festival, finalist in the ’09 Telluride Troubadour Contest, and others as well. “There’s a grit to her songs and sinewy toughness to her voice that weave their own spell,” (Q Magazine.)
Come Sunrise, a collection of 11 original songs and Rita’s third album, was released in June of 2009. Recorded in Austin, Texas with producer and guitarist Rich Brotherton (Robert Earl Keen, Caroline Herring,) Come Sunrise launches Rita onto the international Americana scene with players such as Brotherton himself, Lloyd Maines, Warren Hood, Glenn Fukunaga, and many more. “Superb country-folk from a brilliant singer-songwriter,” (Americana UK.) In addition to her ’07 Silver Stream and ’05 Are You Ready? featuring members of her band “Cousin Jack,” Come Sunrise completes a collection of well received recordings.
Rita performs in variable configurations including solo, duo or trio, and often as a quartet called “Rita Hosking and Cousin Jack,” –Rita on guitar, Sean Feder on banjo, dobro, bass and guitar, Andy Lentz on fiddle, and Bill Dakin on bass and guitar.
Jefferson Hamer & Tashina Clarridge
Tickets: $12 advance, $16 at the door.
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When two of the best young artists from the east coast new acoustic music scene come together to play as a duo, the audience knows it’s in for a treat! Jefferson Hamer, multi-instrumentalist and clear-voiced folk singer, mixes his repertoire of new and old songs with the fiddling of one of America’s greatest young players, Tashina Clarridge, a fiddler since age two and winner of the National Old Time Fiddlers’ Contest in Weiser, Idaho. What results is a sparkling musical collaboration that pulls the audience into a world of astonish
ingly relevant original and traditional folk songs, performed with excitement, creativity, and tremendous all-around musicianship.
Jefferson Hamer started singing and playing stringed instruments around Colorado in the late 90′s, making a mark with his acoustic trio Single Malt Band and the country-rock outfit Great American Taxi. After a decade spent in the West, he took his talents to New York City. Because of his ability to cross genres and musical styles, and his versatility both as a soloist and as an accompanist, Jefferson has become a master of collaboration, cultivating partnerships with Anais Mitchell, Laura Cortese, Kristin Andreassen, Session Americana, and Irish music quartet Murphy Beds. Jefferson’s original songs reflect a wide breadth of influences and echo the distilled melodies and lyricism of British, Irish, and American traditional music. His 2004 release “Left Wing Sweetheart” earned a 4-star review from Marquee Music Magazine, who said it “sounds like a forgotten Gram Parsons release suddenly discovered.”
Tashina Clarridge was raised in the mountains of northern California. She is one of the youngest fiddlers to become Grand National Fiddle Champion, and in addition she is a 6-time
Grand National finalist, 6-time California State Fiddle Champion, and 2-time Western Open grand Champion. Though her contest record speaks to her clear abilities in Texas style contest fiddling, it is her enthusiasm for many diverse styles that brings a higher level of creativity to her playing. Tashina has performed at Carnegie Hall as part of Grammy winning bassist Edger Meyer’s Young Artist Concert. She is a member of the influential new music string band, The Bee Eaters, which performs accross the United States. Tashina lends her fiddling to projects by other prominent musicians including famed banjo player Tony Trischka, and Grammy Winners Laurie Lewis and Mark O’Connor. O’Connor has said of Tashina, “…she will make a lasting impact on the people she touches with her talent in the future. She is in music for the right reasons and we as listeners will benefit from it”.
Lindsay Fuller & Gregory Paul
Tickets: $8 advance, $10 at the door.
Sorry, this show is completely sold out! No tickets will be released at the door.
Lindsay Fuller is an Alabama bred, Seattle-based songwriter who has been described as “Flannery O’Connor with a telecaster” (Twang Nation) on account of her gritty, haunting storytelling. Her most recen album The Last Light I See , a follow up to her debut Lindsay Fuller and The Cheap Dates, was released in June 2010.
Her unique voice has been described as a “burnished, soulful trill that sounds like the frame of a beautiful old church that’s about to collapse on itself” (The Examiner) and “a delicious combo platter of soulfulness and vibrato that grabs you by the shoulders and gives you a good shake” (Spectrum
Culture). She recently had the opportunity to open some shows for national acts including the Indigo Girls and The Civil Wars. She and her band (The Cheap dates) are currently working on a new record that they plan to release in the fall of 2011.
Gregory Paul spent most of his life as a musician in Upstate, NY before moving to Seattle in May, 2009. He has been touring and releasing solo albums sporadically since 1996 consisting of haunted, mesmerizing songs and compositions with folk, traditional, psych, experimental and minimalist influences. He currently earns a living as a street musician performing old time clawhammer banjo songs at the Pike Place Market.
Levi Fuller, Tomo Nakayama, Louis O’Callaghan
Tickets: $8 advance, $10 at the door.
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Please join us for this triple bill as three Seattle songwriters take the Empty Sea stage!
Levi Fuller has released three solo albums since moving to Seattle from Boston in 2001. His 2009 album Colossal was praised as “one of the most elegant, quietly powerful albums you’ll hear this year” by The Stranger, and “a striking collection of minimalist acoustic songs” by the Seattle Weekly. In addition, he performs as a member of Seattle bands Pufferfish, The Luna Moth, and The Dexter Street Stompers, and curates the compilation series Ball of Wax Audio Quarterly.
Tomo Nakayama is the singer, multi-instrumentalist, and chief songwriter of the Seattle ensemble Grand Hallway. Nakayama’s folk-influenced chamber pop songs feature his high tenor voice and stark, poetic lyrics sung in both English and Japanese. Grand Hallway’s albums have earned acclaim from NPR, KEXP, and Amazon.com, and they have performed all over the United States and Japan, sharing the stage with such artists as Shearwater, Damien Jurado, Robin Pecknold, and Shugo Tokumaru. Nakayama will be performing songs from Grand Hallway’s upcoming full-length album, which they are currently recording in Portland and is due out sometime in 2011.
Louis O’Callaghan has released two solo rock/folk albums as The Graze, currently plays in neo/art grunge band An Invitation to Love, and is a veteran of several Seattle bands including Brent Amaker and the Rodeo, Rosyvelt, and Mississippi Painful.
Shannon Stephens, Tony Kevin Jr.
Tickets: $8 advance, $12 at the door.
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Shannon Stephens began her musical career in 1994 as the voice of the band Marzuki, a folk-rock ensemble assembled by Sufjan Stevens. Marzuki played a lot of shows around Michigan, and a few ill-fated shows in New York City. They released two albums in the five years that they were together.
After Marzuki disbanded, Shannon began to perform and record on her own. She recorded her self-titled debut LP in 1999, the same year she moved to Seattle and shared the stage with the likes of Denison Witmer, Rose Thomas, Jason Harrod and Damien Jurado. But by the time the new album had come back from the manufacturer, she had realized that all this music stuff was a lot of work. The boxes went into her garage and collected dust for nine years while she got married, read copious amounts of books, had a daughter, and did lots of hippy stuff like growing potatoes, canning preserves, and making kombucha.
In 2008, one of her songs (“I’ll Be Glad”) was covered by Bonnie “Prince” Billy on his album Lie Down In The Light. In 2009, Shannon released her second album, The Breadwinner, which Rachel Carson at Exclaim! described as “…a spectacularly beautiful and fiercely compelling sophomore album” and Sufjan Stevens called “…a joyful, heartful collection of quiet, gorgeous songs about family, friends, work, love, and the beauty of the world at large.”
In 2010, Asthmatic Kitty Records proudly re-released Shannon’s self-titled debut (2000). Produced by Stephens and her former Marzuki bandmates Sufjan Stevens and Matthew Haseltine, the re-press features new artwork and two previously unreleased bonus tracks. Shannon continues to play shows in the Seattle area and around the Pacific Northwest, and is busy writing songs for her next album.
Appearing with Shannon Stephens is Tony Kevin Jr, “a next generation troubadour with songs that explore both the spiritual and venal sides of life with knowing sadness and sweet choruses that will stick with you for days.” – Abbey Simmons (Sound on the Sound)
“This Western Washington native is a singer/songwriter with dynamic vocals, attention-grabbing lyrics and an easy going style. When listening to Tony or attending one of his shows you won’t feel the distance that often pops up between a musician and their audience. His music is made of stuff you can reach out and grasp, mold in your hands and make your own. Through his words and gritty vocals, Tony grabs you in your seat and turns the color in your world brighter, the shadows darker, the edges sharper. He is an everyday man who makes life into art for the ears of anyone who will listen. What he has to say will move you.” – Kimberly Loomis (The Musician’s Wife)
Brownesville Highway – CD Release Party
Tickets: $10 advance, $14 at the door.
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Please join us as we celebrate the release of Brownesville Highway’s inaugural studio album, recorded here at Empty Sea.
Georgia Browne, previously with the acclaimed a cappella trio, Bella, and Americana group Chele’s Kitchen, has played a variety of festivals and such venues as the Triple Door and the Intiman Theater. While Georgia’s songwriting comes from a deeply personal space, her lyrics are easily accessible and universally understood. With her soulful, heartfelt delivery, Georgia’s songs are evocative and unforgettable.
Rob Gilbert, a cartoonist and animator by trade, has followed a long-time interest in music that began in bars and dives in New York City playing in rock/blues/funk bands. Over a decade ago, he eschewed electric instruments and has developed a passion for acoustic music. Influenced by a variety of styles including old-time county, classical, jazz, and Appalachian mountain music, he pulls from his Southern American and Eastern European ancestral roots to write diverse songs which are at once fresh and timeless.
“It’s been quite a wonderful and amazing experience to see our two styles blending and creating something new, musically.” Georgia explains, “We’ve been playing together for about a year now, and the songs we write together are reflective of our individuality, but take on a crazy life of their own.” The pair switch instruments continuously, keeping things interesting using various pairings of voice, guitar, banjos, mandolin, mandola, mountain dulcimers, and upright bass. “We’re constantly learning and reinventing ourselves, and try not to take things too seriously,” says Gilbert.
Cancelled – Gabrielle Louise
Please note: This concert has been cancelled due to a family emergency. Advance ticketholders will receive a full refund. We apologize for the inconvenience!
Gabrielle Louise’s music is anchored deeply in folk, but undeniably drawn to rich harmonies and melodic adventurism. Her sound has the earthy feel of early Joni Mitchell while also veering into the spirited delivery of fellow genre-hopping artist Martin Sexton. Unafraid to take a random musical escapade in the name of inspiration, Gabrielle is at one moment folkie and ethereal, the next moment a smoky jazz chanteuse. She has 100% independently released four records, Journey (2006), Around in Circles, the E.P. (2007), Cigarettes for Sentiments (2008), and Live in Coal Creek Canyon (2009).
Gabrielle’s music has been best appreciated in listening atmospheres with introspective, attentive crowds. She strives to communicate more through soul than special effect and gently entices her listener to release their grip on the status quo. In a music industry that tends to view its artists as either super-stars or failures, Gabrielle aims to break the trend by offering her creative personality as-is, a professional presentation of her private journaling.
As a performer and songwriter, Gabrielle has made a commitment towards the environment. In 2007, she released a single, “Save the Arkansas” that seeks to bring awareness to a dire environmental situation that is threatening the health and safety of the Arkansas River Watershed. Having both grown up and worked as a raft guide on the Arkansas, maintaining the purity of its waters is very important to her.
Recently, Gabrielle has been getting deeply involved in the world of alternative fueling. She tours in a Veggie Van, affectionately dubbed “Vita,” using what would be thrown out restaurant grease to fuel the tour vehicle! Gabrielle Louise and her tour manager, Chris Garre give workshops along the way, explaining to interested environmentalists how the technology works to convert and run a vehicle on used grease.
CANCELED – Ian Ethan
Please note – due to unforseen circumstances, Ian Ethan’s show for Friday, June 25th has been cancelled.
We hope to reschedule for later in the fall!
Advance ticket-holders: We apologize for the inconvenience this cancellation causes you! You will be receiving a refund on your credit card (including the service fee) through Brown Paper Tickets. Please contact me at michael@emptysea.com with any questions!
Acoustic Double-Neck Guitarist Ian Ethan‘s new album “Into Open Land” is an exploration of the largely untraversed musical territory that this unique 18-string instrument provides access to.
Unveiling the true musical potential of an instrument that has previously seen little serious use as more than a stage prop, the Vermont artist employs a wide variety of highly-innovative playing techniques that take full advantage of 18 strings, two fretboards, and his experience as a drummer, bassist, pianist, and composer.
The nine-part musical whole of “Into Open Land”, more than simply validating the use of the instrument, is the beginning of an epic journey through pristine worlds that present to the alert and engaged listener countless intriguing gems of fresh insight and inspiring, expansive views of a world that is tangibly deeper and more infinite than our physical surroundings.
Solo pieces such as “Appalachia By Air” and “North By Northeast / One Straight Line” simultaneously intertwine drumset-like percussive ideas and groovy bass lines with inventive melodies and counter-melodies, always supported by a rich, colorful, three-dimensional harmonic context.
Meanwhile “band” tracks such as “Fourth Corner” and “Call of the Hill” (featuring Ethan’s overdubbed self-accompaniment on drumset, electric bass, percussion, and multiple double-necks) present an even more powerful and complete view of these highly detailed, multi-layered compositions.
Tying the whole album together is an unpretentious and consistently adventurous spirit that steers clear altogether of “The Road Less Traveled” and heads straight out into open land, where one has the freedom to explore and discover without limits, and thereby realize more of what has always been.
Morwenna Lasko & Jay Pun
Tickets: $13 advance, $15 at the door
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“This duo is a force. The music comes from the heart, and bristles with excitement and inventiveness… Much of the country and world hasn’t tuned in yet, but they will. One listen is all it takes.”
-Aer Stephen (“Folk & Beyond” WTJU)
A sound that’s hard to describe, yet impossible to forget. With a cutting edge vibe that explodes with originality and soulful expression, Morwenna Lasko & Jay Pun‘s music redefines the acoustic origins of violin and guitar. Both graduates of Berklee College of Music, the violin & guitar duo started playing together in 2004 and have continued to push the boundaries of “acoustic” music. The release of their highly anticipated 2nd CD Chioggia Beat illustrates their ability to reinvent the limits of their instruments and in the process produce a lush range of original work that is sure to move your soul and mind. A worldly mix of 12 brand new tunes, the album showcases Morwenna and Jay’s heartfelt composition skills, along with their knack for introducing unexpected musical tangents and motifs in a way that keeps you wanting more. The CD features their signature duo sound, their full band, as well as a few special guest musicians such as legendary world artist Pierre Bensusan, soul singer Ezra Hamilton, and Dave Matthews Bandtrumpeter Rashawn Ross.
Morwenna is one of the most original and creative violinists of today. After seeing Itzhak Perlman on Sesame Street at age 3, she begged her mom for a violin and began lessons shortly thereafter. As a child, she studied classical music with Richard Errante and also played in a band that she and her father co-founded called Cafe Musette that focused on Gypsy Swing, Celtic, and other genres. Morwenna graduated early from high-school to attend Berklee College of Music in 2000 where she continued her studies in Jazz, Bluegrass, and other styles and graduated in 2003. At Berklee, she was honored to have shared the stage with such greats as Brian Blade, Charlie Hayden, andSteven Tyler of Aerosmith. Over time, Morwenna has developed her own unique sound and tone, that is simply unmistakable. She plays with purpose and sincerity, and has often been compared to the great jazz violinist Stuff Smith and the haunting sounds of Scottish fiddler, Johnny Cunningham.
Jay began to study classical piano at the age of 5 and soon after decided to move on to drum lessons. The guitar was picked up accidentally in some sense, when his middle school band member did not show up to rehearsal and someone needed to fill in. Jay put down his drum sticks, picked up a guitar, and soon discovered a passion for the guitar. During high-school he studied with jazz/blues guitarist Jamal Millner and became fascinated with funk music when he discovered the sound of groups like Parliament Funkadelic and The Meters. One day, his Spanish teacher told him that world renowned finger-style guitarist, Pierre Bensusan was playing a show in town and suggested that he should attend. After that concert Jay’s perception of how the guitar was played and what one could extract from the instrument changed forever. He was so taken by the performance that he later studied with Bensusan at an intensive master class held in Chateau Thierry, France. After graduating high-school, Jay moved straight to Boston, MA to enroll at Berklee College of Music where he studied songwriting, music business, and performance. Jay plays with deep emotion and clarity and his sound is often compared to the late great Michael Hedges.
Together, they have shared shows with such greats as Bela Fleck & The Flecktones, Dave Matthews Band, Avett Brothers,Toubab Krewe, The Duhks, Frank Vignola Quintet, Jesse Colin Young, Ralph Stanley, Corey Harris, Ben Taylor, and more. They’ve also had the great pleasure and honor to play at some wonderful festivals and clubs such as FloydFest, Bristol’s Rhythm & Roots, The Prism Coffeehouse, Club Passim,Eddie’s Attic, Down Home, and the list goes on…
Ryan McKasson, Ashley Broder & Dave Bartley
Tickets: $13 advance, $15 at the door.
Click here to purchase advance tickets.
Ryan McKasson, Ashley Broder & Dave Bartley are all quite well-known in their respective fields, but never before performed as an ensemble. This unprecedented collaboration on the Empty Sea stage will provide a night of music-making never before heard!
Ryan McKasson started his classical violin studies at the age of four and began his viola studies when he was fourteen. At the same time, he switched from classical violin to begin his traditional fiddle journey with the renowned fiddler and teacher, Carol Ann Wheeler. Under her instruction he explored a wide range of American and Celtic styles, but found a new passion in the music of his heritage, Scotland. In 1993 Ryan attended the Valley of the Moon Scottish Fiddling School for the first time. There he heard the fiddling of Alasdair Fraser and Buddy MacMaster, who have since been his greatest influences. In 1995, Ryan was winner of the National Junior Championship, and went on a year later to be the youngest winner of the National Scottish Fiddle Open Championship in Loon Mountain, New Hampshire. As a fiddler, Ryan has performed with artist Bobby McFerrin. He has also shared the stage with pop artists Elvis Costello, Beck, Bjork, Galvin Friday and composer Phillip Glass. In 2001 Ryan collaborated with fiddler Richard Greene and the Greene String Quartet in Los Angeles for the Harry Smith Project.
An accomplished classical musician, Ryan attended the University of Southern California in Viola Performance as a student of Donald McInnes. He has been awarded fellowships to many prestigious music festivals, including the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara and the Bowdoin Music Festival in Maine.
Ashley Broder began her classical violin studies at the age of eight in Ventura County, California. Her violin teacher, Charl Ann Gastineau, also encouraged her to simultaneously learn mandolin where she became familiar with fiddle styles associated to the instrument. Ashley traveled the west coast competing in fiddle contests, winning several. In 2005, after studying classical violin and cello in college, she met fiddler Jamie Laval and the duo set off on a four year musical touring adventure that took them across the U.S. numerous times and to the U.K. Ashley has worked with renowned mandolinist Mike Marshall at the Mandolin Symposium in Santa Cruz, CA as well as helped organize his series The Mandolin Method Books. Now pursuing another passion, composition, Ashley is currently working on arranging singer-songwriter, Billy Jonas’, songs for orchestra.
Dave Bartley plays mandolin, guitar, cittern, and numerous other plucked string instruments in numerous bands. He has also written over 250 tunes, some of which are working their way into repertoires around the country. He can provide a quiet foundation, inject a fiery driving rhythm, or pull wicked licks out of thin air. His odyssey from flashy rock guitarist to classical musician to eclectic sideman to tunesmith filters through his fingers.
Dave has played mandolin onstage in the Seattle Opera in the 1999 and 2007 stagings of Don Giovanni and played steel-string acoustic guitar with the Seattle Symphony in 2004 for performances of Naive and Sentimental Music by composer John Adams, as well as mandolin for Mahler’s 7th and 8th symphonys with the same orchestra.
