Cat Power

So many artists and musicians start their musical journey in their hometown, state or comfort zone.  Then they go to New York and something happens.  Sometimes that something is good and they beat the odds and rise above and sometimes that something is simply fading away.

I’ve just recently started listening to Chan Marshall, but I’ve always dug the overall genre and style that she has adapted as her own.  Plus…she has a cool story and career.  Chan Marshall was born in Georgia where she dropped out of high school to start playing gigs in and around Atlanta.  She adopted the name Cat Power and was backed by a few local musicians.  At the age of 20, she decided to move to New York and quickly discovered a cool experimental scene which would greatly influence her yet to be determined career.

Her minimalist and raw style drew an emerging fan base which led to a few big tours as an opening act in the early 90’s.  As I mentioned, I am just getting through Cat power’s catalog, but what I am mostly impressed by is that as she develops as a musician she explores and experiments with various instrument sounds and techniques, but never allows it to take away from her vocal appeal and draw.  Each song has its own flavor and feel, but the soul is always Cat Power.

Some cool notes:

Cat Power released two albums – one in 1995 and one in 1996, however both were recorded in the same day.

She released the album Moon Pix in 1998 – all of the songs have a loose or direct connection to the Moon or Lunar Cycles.

In 2000, she released an album consisting of only covers – titled The Covers Record

Legendary musicians such as Dave Grohl and Eddie Vedder have appeared on Cat Power’s albums.

She’s hot

 In addition to opening for Interpol, other Cat Power gigs can be found here.