Sara Swenson’s new release “All Things Big and Small” (September 18, 2010) proves Swenson deserves her quick climb to the top of Kansas City’s singer-songwriting community. The polished and insightful album comes on the heels of Swenson’s performance at the Kansas City Lilith Fair this summer, and plants her firmly among the big-name talent she shared the stage with.
Just three years ago, a guitar-store employee suggested she try her hand at songwriting. Turns out Swenson had a natural talent. In 2008, she collected her first batch of tunes and recorded her rookie full-length album, “Sara Swenson,” nine raw tunes that featured her vocals and guitar with little extra decoration.
Simple as it was, people connected with her music. In 2009 she won the title of Kansas City’s Best Singer- Songwriter at the Pitch Music Awards and garnered the top spot on KKFI 90.1’s list of 100 Top Recordings of 2009. She then recorded and released the digital single “Be Not Far,” the track that won Ourstage’s Lilith Local Talent Contest, putting her on the 2010 Kansas City Lilith Fair bill with Sarah McLachlan, Emmylou Harris, Heart, Ingrid Michaelson and others.
Such significant success for such a short-lived music career would get any new artist thinking. She decided she didn’t just want to create songs; she wanted to really deserve the attention of listeners.
“I heightened expectations of myself and dreamt of what that might sound like on a new album,” Swenson said.
Somewhere between keeping up with a demanding day job (teaching ninth grade English and journalism) and continuing to play weekend gigs, she set about her goal of creating a new work of art. Her introspection produced a record of diverse songs that demonstrate artistic maturation while retaining the depth, heart and simple charm that attracted her first fans.
Swenson took notes from some of her favorite artists—four of which collaborate with her on ”All Things Big and Small” (Katie Herzig, Gregory Alan Isakov, Lori Chaffer and producer Don Chaffer)—and refined her craft.
“Sara Swenson has a unique artistic perspective to lend. Her lyrics- alternately contemplative and incisive- keep close company with her alluring melodies, and her voice seems to wrap everything in swaddling clothes. In her musical presence, I'm regularly drawn into rediscovering my own sense of wonder. What a gift,” says Chaffer.
On the new record, Swenson expanded her vocal range, varied her song structures and moods, and explored a wider variety of sounds. Her songs draw from a broader range of human experience than her first album: the playfulness of a drive down the road, the mystery that shrouds an encounter with nature, the admission of being limited in love The songs nestle together on a record bound by the attention to the subtleties of life, or the details of “All Things Big and Small.”
To lay down the 11 tracks, Swenson trekked south to Woodland Studios in Nashville, Tenn., in late spring 2010, to work again with Chaffer, who also produced her first record. While Herzig, Isakov and Don and Lori Chaffer provide lush background vocals, the album also features the instrumental stylings of Don Chaffer, sound engineer Greg LaFollette, drummer Billy Brimblecom, Jr. and electric/pedal steel player Jeff Larison, a regular counterpart to Swenson in live performances.
“In a world that sometimes feels like a flood tide of grime, it's a breath of fresh air when someone can write songs that feel at once pure, vulnerable, and real without sounding cruel. Even her tragedies seem kind,” concluded Don Chaffer. “Three cheers for Sara Swenson.”
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Swenson will release “All Things Big and Small” on September 18, 2010, at The Living Room (1818 McGee) in Kansas City, Mo. To recreate the sounds of the recording, a full band will back her for the first time in a live performance. (Band members will include Jeff Larison: electric/pedal steel; Ian Davidson: acoustic/electric; Sarah Mueller: keys/vocals; Roger Strong: bass; and Brandon Graves: drums.) For more details, please visit www.saraswenson.com.
“All Things Big and Small” will soon be available on iTunes, Amazon.com and CD Baby.
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