December 11, 2015
A FEAST FOR THE EARS: LEA, SIOBHAN QUINN & MICHAEL BOWERS and JOY IKE
Our holiday gift for you–three world-class acts for the price of one! This promises to be a a soulful and electrifying evening.
SIOABHAN QUINN and MICHAEL BOWERS
http://dreamersloversandoutlaws.com/
Gracious and gritty songs brimming with seamless harmonies. Excellent music finely crafted with precision, emotion and beauty. This is Siobhan Quinn and Michael Bowers. They never produce the same performance twice and there is a focus and continuity in their shows that leaves you with little doubt that these two are truly partners. Siobhan brings the audience directly to the emotional center of each song and entrances you with her vocals. Michael draws you in with his warmth, humor, and makes observations of life with a wry twist. Together Siobhan and Michael paint dynamic and colorful stories with rich original, contemporary and traditional music.
Siobhan Quinn and Michael Bowers make for a powerful combination. On “Dreamers, Lovers & Outlaws” they bring us the best in contemporary folk music, and through their arrangements and performances they will mesmerize you. — Nicky Rossiter, Ireland
In “Dreamers, Lovers and Outlaws,” Siobhan Quinn and Michael Bowers have crafted a wonderful musical experience. Whether they’re singing the inspirational, comforting “Let It Come” or the story of “Valentino’s Ghost,” their voices take the music and lyrics and shape them, bringing the songs to life.
The original material is outstanding, refreshing, innovative–where else can you hear the town of Port Jervis being used within a song? The CD also includes several cover tunes, carefully selected to fit in “naturally” with the rest of the collection. But Quinn and Bowers have a way of making these songs their own, arranging, cajoling a tone from the lyrics, immersing themselves into the meaning of the songs. This CD is indeed a treat–worth the wait! — Wanda Fischer WAMC-FM Northeast Public Radio Albany, NY
“A great voice singing great songs.” That is the simplest way to introduce you to LEA’s music. While she often draws comparisons to other female phenoms like Tracy Chapman, Joni Mitchell and Ani DiFranco, LEA’s sound seamlessly blends gospel, jazz, country and R&B into her own style. — SoulFolk
Having shared the stage with luminaries including Odetta, Mavis Staples, Dar Williams and Anthony Hamilton, LEA is consistently acknowledged by the Washington Area Music Association* as one of the region’s best vocalists, songwriters and recording artists. Lea is a graduate of the prestigious Artist-in-Residence program at The Music Center at Strathmore in Bethesda, MD.
LEA’s latest recording, the crowd-funded and highly-anticipated “Let You In,” is a collection of songs the artists hopes will cultivate greater compassion for femininity. LEA’s stunning vocals and award winning songwriting are supported by rich instru mentation, featuring the wizardry of Howard Levy (of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones) on harmonica.
JOY IKE
www.joyike.com
Born to Nigerian immigrants, Joy Ike’s music, voice, and writing has drawn comparisons to female musicians such as Corinne Bailey Rae, Regina Spektor, Norah Jones, and Fiona Apple, but her percussive piano-playing and soaring vocals give homage to her African upbringing. “Some of my earliest memories involve sitting in the living room with my family singing Nigerian choruses and finding ways to harmonize with my father’s booming voice and my mother’s soprano harmonies,” Ike says of her formative years.
Leaving her career as a publicist in 2008, Ike has since played hundreds of shows across the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest. She has had the opportunity to share the stage and open for Jeffrey Gaines, Cody Chestnutt, Tyrone Wells, Najee, Allen Toussaint, and Ken Whitely & The Levy Sisters to name a few. A write-up on NPR’s All Things Considered says “The depth of subjects she tackles in her poetic lyrics are perfectly complemented by a unique blend of neo-soul, with just the right dash of pop…a truly compelling act to watch in person, with the ability to create an intimate setting in locations big and small.” A segment on NPR’s World Cafe (December 2013) featured Ike as one of Pennsylvania’s up-and-coming artists