And We're Off!

    Let's hit the ground running in 2008, what do you say? Thao Nguyen will do nicely to get us on our way.

    I don't usually do band-to-band comparisons, but I think I can safely say that if you enjoy Laura Veirs, you will like Thao. (Laura contributes some vocals and her Saltbreaker bandmate Tucker Martine not only plays trumpet on the record but produced, recorded and mixed it, so I think it's a pretty safe bet.)

    I like Thao even more, actually. She's got a loose, slightly rambunctious guitar-led sound that really appeals to me. I bet she and her band, The Get Down Stay Down, would be great fun live. Her lyrics are witty and honest, with certain lines hitting me directly. For instance, from "Yes, So On and So On":

Loved large enough to want to shrink

Been dumb enough to start to think . . . 

I am going away but not away from you

I have found the difference between the two . . .  so on

We want too much, it's a given

in the bones of the matter we live in

I want more than can be given

at the heart of the matter we live in . . . so on . . .

    I'm still discovering what this album has to offer and I can't wait to find out what else is going to jump up and grab me. FYI all you burgeoning banjo players, Thao plays banjo, too.

    This is her second album and it comes out Jan. 29th. You can hear more at her myspace and at a Daytrotter session she did last August, available here. She's from Washington, D.C., but happens to be on tour in Europe through the end of January. The rest of the band includes Willis Thompson (also in The Light Footwork), Frank Stewart (also in Verbal Dolorean) and Adam "The OK BIRD" Thompson.

Thao--"Beat (Health, Life and Fire)" mp3 off We Brave Bee Stings and All (buy)

Thao--"Bag of Hammers" mp3 off We Brave Bee Stings and All 

image by sarah cass 

tags: thao  

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