On April 12, singer-songwriter Dana Louise and the Glorious Birds will present numbers from their new self-titled album. Choosing to to be unconfined by genre names, they call their music future folk and will give San Pedro a taste at the Grand Annex.
Louise’s father, Ezra Idlet on guitar and Keith Grimwood on percussion and bass, make up two members of the Glorious Birds. They also happen to be the original 1970s duo, Trout Fishing in America. They are joined by band member, Adams Collins, vibraphone and 5-string banjo player.
RLN spoke to Louise through email before their concert about music, their tour and her inspirations. Louise who is also a visual artist taught herself to play guitar while she travelled on her own to the Azores Islands in 2011. She kept at it and is now touring her debut album with Trout Records.
The album, Dana Louise and The Glorious Birds has many interesting sounds, bluegrass and folk but also a hint of Bossa Nova on All the Pretty Boys and more subtly, on A Thousand Lives.
MP: Being self-taught on guitar, what types of music and if any, which artists did you pull from to teach yourself how to play? Who are your musical inspirations?
DL: I cast a wide net when listening to music. I think I naturally absorb and incorporate the things that inspire me into my music. I originally started learning the songs of Alela Diane, she’s in the folk world and I just fell in love with her simple guitar playing and lyrics. Joni Mitchell is the queen of my world. Her musical exploration and lyrical genius is just stunning. I am really moved when I see women holding nothing back in their songwriting or performance.
MP: You have a nice rendition – and video of Backstreet’s, No Diggity. Are you a Rhythm & Blues and hip hop fan?
DL: I definitely went through a phase earlier in my youth where I was all about R&B and hip hop. [Blackstreet] was the first tape I ever bought with my own money so that’s where that song came from. I get glares in the van sometimes when I try to play my Justin Bieber and Beyoncé favorites.
MP: What inspired your song, Timber? It has very poignant lyrics. What is the meaning behind it?
DL: Music completely changed my life trajectory. I was a visual artist, very in love with a mountain man and wanted to stay out in the woods, have a family and fend for ourselves. I had incredible musical chemistry with a friend of mine and needed to pursue that. My relationship at the time was becoming more and more strained with late nights and new people. I was just waking up to this new world around me and excited to explore it. I felt very confused and in love, but also clamped down on in the relationship. After coming home late one night I saw that my partner had set up a teepee out in the woods for some space (we lived in a one room cabin.) I could not sleep that night and this song just fell out of me.
MP: Under Water has a unique sound. The combo of the drums juxtaposed against the vibes with the deep resonant strings was intriguing and amazing. Can you describe the process of recording that number?
DL: I think the drum you are noticing is the Doumbek. (A goblet shaped drum, used mostly in the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, and Eastern Europe). I was most likely pestering my dad to put lots and lots of reverb on everything. I want everything dripping with reverb and for the soundscape to float. I’m not saying it’s always the best choice, but it just makes me happy. Under Water really lent itself to that feel in the recording.
My dad, Ezra Idlet, recorded and produced this album. I really didn’t have the musical vocabulary to tell him what I wanted out of the record, but we figured out our own language. Also, Adams and Keith are just wizards on the vibes and bass and work incredibly well together.
MP: What is coming up next for you?
DL: Right now the band is going through some changes. My plan is to record an album this summer and by the end of that have a handful of people I can call on to hit the road. The faces may change for a while, but I’m interested to see how the songs grow and morph into something new. I’m really itching to record these tunes and put them out into the world.
On the curious description, future folk to describe their sound, a few numbers may fit into this arrangement, Dust, the previously mentioned All the Pretty Boys and Timber. Dust blends Appalachian finger picking with a blend of percussion, through shakers, that bring a samba vibe to the track. The vibraphone on All the Pretty Boys dips neatly into jazz. Timber at once grounds and uplifts. It brings resonance through bass, lightness through dexterous banjo picking and an overall fluidity through guitar. It’s a symphony of strings alongside most imaginative lyrics.
This fusion of sounds signifies an ongoing crossing of lines and borders. Genre blending that in the past was conventionally uncommon. Folk was folk, rock was rock and of course pop was pop. It’s now that we see musicians more often exploring wide, varied genres, coming out with their own particular blend of sounds, based on their own inspiration.
Dana Louise and the Glorious Birds are a stimulating listen that will take you into the future and comfort your senses here and now.
Time: 8 p.m. April 12
Cost: $20 to $30
Details: (310) 833-4813, www.grandvision.org
Venue: Grand Annex, 478 W. 6th St. San Pedro