Seattle-based songwriter fuses penchant for lyrics, jazz and folk
Veteran musician, Zorn collaborator marks new album with local show
To appreciate the genius of Robin Holcomb, just play Waltz. The second track on the Seattle-based composer/singer-songwriter's new Westerlies Records release, One Way or Another, Vol. 1, is a perfect example of the artist's singular genius.
Imagine a combination of the unconventional piano meditations of French composer Erik Satie providing backing for Appalachian folk hero Jean Ritchie by way of Charles Ives' modernist tonal imagery. The high-lonesome, hushed vocals and soft, somewhat minimalist chamber orchestration settle over you like a warm summer shower. Both melancholy and uplifting, her songs are concise snippets of daily life with far wider implications.
It has made for a career that has found the musician active in the New York City downtown scene alongside such luminaries as John Zorn and Sonic Youth's Lee Renaldo, and to rave reviewed releases on such labels as Elektra, Nonesuch and Tzadik.
A frequent collaborator with Vancouver-based cellist Peggy Lee, Holcomb is in town for a residency at 8East presented by NOW Society and Coastal Jazz and Blues Society, which finds her compositions played by the NOW Ensemble, as well as an improvisation workshop and two solo concerts. She chatted about her singular sound prior to her local appearances.
Q You have long maintained cross-border collaborations with the Vancouver scene, so it must be nice to be coming back up again.
A I understand 8East has a new piano — or at least new to me — which I'm excited about. The last time I played there was supposed to be with Peggy Lee, but she couldn't make it. So instead I worked with trumpeter JP Carter, guitarist Cole Schmidt and, I think, bassist Torsten Müller. I've always found like-minded musicians in Vancouver to work with.
Q The new recording showcases your knack for homing in on a tune and a lyric with a rough folkiness. How does someone with your kind of avant-garde scene connections channel that kind of rural authenticity?
A Well, I was born in Savannah, Ga. But I really grew up in the South Bay area of California. But I did drop out of college to go back to Georgia to sharecrop tobacco, which gave me some pretty deep insight. I have a bit of a twang in my voice when I'm down there.
Q One Way or Another, Vol. 1 is a mixed bag of sorts. I assume from the title that there are more volumes to come?
A People will have heard some of the other songs that were recorded with a band on, say, my Nonesuch records. Others were never recorded before or are different arrangements. It was a kind of random selection process that coincided with my putting out a book of my lyrics as well. That started with the first song I ever wrote moving right up to the most recent.
Q Playing and writing solo, band, theatrical, improvisational and other styles of music, is there a preference for one form over another?
A No, not really. I have a life as a songwriter, as an improvised musician, as a composer, and sometimes I unite them and other times I favour one over another. I recently wrote something for the Philadelphia Orchestra, so does that make me a classical composer too? As I see it, it's all music work. I guess I need to hire a branding firm to figure it out.
Q Do you think that being located in a creative community that is still geographically isolated from the nerve centres like New York or Chicago means you are able to pursue more varied creative directions?
A I think it's more that I'm interested in more kinds of music and jump in where I feel like. I've never been a straight-ahead jazz player performing with others who are crazy skilled at that because it's not my thing. One of the reasons Peggy Lee is such a perfect foil for me is that she is very comfortable working with singers and also as an improviser, so we get to explore both of those avenues performing together.