lifeblood: listlogs: 2008v10n156-news

ig-news-digest        sunday, november 23 2008        volume 10 : number 156

today's subjects:
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  [ig-news] asheville citizen-times amy interview  [sherlyn koo <sherlyn@pix]

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date: sun, 23 nov 2008 18:18:29 +1100
from: sherlyn koo <sherlyn@pixelopolis.com>
subject: [ig-news] asheville citizen-times amy interview

hi folks,

this is from the asheville citizen times.  you can read it online at http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?aid=2008811210303.

cheers,
sherlyn

- ---begin forwarded article---
citizen-times.com
november 21, 2008

indigo girl amy ray goes solo for orange peel show
by laura blackley

amy ray proves herself as much a force within the underground rock community as she's done as a latter-day folkie. as one half of the duo the indigo girls, ray has embarked on a solo career that abandons the stripped-down elements that are normally associated with an indigo girls show, favoring loud, crunchy guitars, punk-rock style drum and bass lines, and often times scathing social and political commentary within her lyrics. ray pays a visit to asheville in support of her newest release didn't it feel kinder (daemon 2008), and breathes new life into that dying art form - rock n' roll. take5 spoke with ray recently.

question: you've put out a new album, enlisting the help of a producer for the first time in your solo career. what inspired these decisions?

answer: the songs initially inspired everything. as i was thinking about doing another record, i wanted to challenge myself and take things to another level. i thought that (hiring a producer) would bring another level of musicality to the project, too. i talked with (drummer) melissa york, and she suggested that i consider working with greg (griffith). we got together and jammed and things just started coming together. musically, i think (the new record) is a little more expansive vocally, and a little more diverse.

q: i've read numerous times that it continues to surprise critics that your solo work is so vastly different from what you do with the indigo girls. why do you think this is?

a: i honestly have no idea, because i've done (the solo project) for so long now that it doesn't seem like it would be that big of a surprise. people that don't know the indigo girls' music that well consider us to be enmeshed in folk, when that's really not the case so much. but if people (hold onto) preconceived notions about the indigo girls' music being purely folk, then i guess this (solo stuff) would seem to come out of left field.

q: how does being a woman from the south inform what you do as an artist?

a: the south is so gothic and deep and fertile. (it's a place) that's rooted deeply in religion, the good and the bad of it. that very much informs the images that i see and the lens that i see them through. (i think) that religion informs writers and artists from here even if they don't come from a religious perspective. it just seeps into your language.

q: how can rock n' roll build community?

a: i think for one thing it's a space where everyone comes together. the live show itself is an important space. being next to somebody and sharing music and sweating and dancing - it's a very free feeling that breaks down barriers and gets past class and race and gender. people come together for activism, fundraising. (rock n' roll ) can definitely give a voice to the community.

laura blackley writes about music for take5. e-mail her at laurablackleyband@yahoo.com.
additional facts
if you go

who: amy ray, with arizona and jennifer o'connor
when: 8 p.m. friday
where: the orange peel, 101 biltmore avenue
how much: $17.00 door
information: 225-5851
on the net: www.amy-ray.com, www.theorangepeel.net

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end of ig-news-digest v10 #156
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