REVIEWS OF "THE AGONY AND ECSTASY OF"
Dan's Papers, 9/12/08
The Agony & Ecstasy of Hampton Bays' Stephanie Carlin
By Tiffany Razzano
Not many young musicians would turn down a record contract with a major, well-known company, but, staying true to her music, that's just what Stephanie Carlin, a recent graduate of Hampton Bays High School, did.
Answering a blind ad on Craigslist for a major fashion company interested in starting its own record label, Carlin was called in to meet with representatives from the company - which turned out to be Tommy Hilfiger. Of hundreds of responses to that ad, she was one of 10 offered a contract, which she promptly turned down. "The guy said to me, 'You're 18. You're hot. And you have a good voice,'" she said. "I was like, 'Really?'" Most 18-year-olds would have jumped at the opportunity, but Carlin is more driven by the need to create music on her terms, without being shoved into a box. "But it's a good story. It was a good learning experience."
Armed with a new CD, The Agony and Ecstasy of, Carlin is invigorating the East End singer-songwriter scene with her raw and intimate music, which is difficult to define. Though she generally dislikes labels (on her Myspace music page she says genres "push artists into little boxes with no airholes or water fountains"), she said during a recent conversation, "If you have to put me into a box, I'd say indie folk."
The Agony and Ecstasy of, Carlin's second EP, creates a unique sound that mixes indie folk and jazz. Her repertoire consists of not only her original songs, but covers of everything from jazz standards by Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday to contemporary acts such as Elliott Smith, Radiohead and Cat Power.
Carlin, who has been singing in vocal ensembles for six years and recently moved to Brooklyn to study jazz vocal performance at Long Island University, originally started performing her original music two years ago with her band, the now defunct Oliver Lankard, which she formed with her best friend. The group played more than 65 shows, performing at venues such as The Crazy Donkey, The Knitting Factory and Maxwell's. On the East End, Carlin and co. made East Enders Coffeehouse in Riverhead their home. "East Enders was so good to us," she said. "They always provided an outlet for us." They also played many Town of Southampton-sponsored events, winning the 2007 Battle of the Bands, and were invited to play at The Stephen Talkhouse, which didn't work out due to conflicting schedules.
Oliver Lankard, originally a six-piece band, at its height swelled to a 10-piece, including a three-piece horn section and three-piece doo-wop back up vocal section. But as the group started to get more serious, having more shows to perform and having won hours in a recording studio at the Battle of the Bands to record its demo, the group whittled itself down until only Carlin and the friend she formed the band with were left.
Having written most of Oliver Lankard's songs herself, Carlin decided to head into the recording studio alone. "I just went ahead and did it myself," she said. "It was better that way," adding that since she had to rearrange the songs, "It's a totally different sound. There's a new dynamic to the sound of the songs."
The result is The Agony and Ecstasy of, which is available online. But, despite how well the EP turned out, Carlin is quick to admit that she thrives on performing live. "For me, my heart is on my sleeve when I play," she said. "My friends have told me, my music is nothing until I play it live."
For more information about Carlin, her upcoming shows or to pick up her EP, go to www.myspace.com/stephaniecarlinrock, where you can also hear an fantastic cover of Britney Spears' "Toxic."
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The Southampton Press, 08/06/08
Carlin Cuts Loose on First Album
By Pat Rogers
Her voice belts sounds that tremble, swell, and then swoop downward before pausing and rising again. When the music wells again, Stephanie Carlin is taking you with her.
On Saturday, everyone is free to experience the trip for themselves when she unveils her solo CD, “Stephanie Carlin: the Agony and Ecstasy of,” at Eastenders Coffee House in Riverhead on Saturday at 8 p.m.
The Hampton Bays teenager has always had a musical knack for creating whirlwinds of sound. She burst onto the local musical stage two years ago with her group, Shasta. The group included Dylan Martinsen of Riverhead, the son of high school music director Debra Liso. They cut a demo and reconfigured into a band named Oliver Lankard, headed by Ms. Carlin on lead vocals and acoustic guitar, with Mr. Martinsen on bass.
The band morphed from a four-member group to six musicians to an ensemble of 10. At its peak, the group featured a three-piece horn section and three doo-wop backup singers. Life and other interests eventually pulled members away and the band faded into history. But not before generating a solid fan base and scoring gigs at prestige venues.
Oliver Lankard played the Knitting Factory in Manhattan, Maxwell’s in New Jersey and the Crazy Monkey in Farmingdale. They shared a bill with Prentiss McNeill of The Drifters. They opened for The Hold Steady keyboardist Franz Nicolay, who received raves from Rolling Stone magazine, said Ms. Carlin.
Closer to home, Oliver Lankard appeared twice in the Southampton Town Battle of the Bands, taking first place their first time out. Shasta also cut their teeth at the teenage battle held annually at Ponquogue Beach in Hampton Bays. Oliver Lankard played battles at Westhampton Beach High School and gigs at Eastenders Coffeehouse in Riverhead.
Taking the stage with a mob of people allowed for a riot of music that swirled and bounced from player to player on stage then projected outward to wrap around the audience. Within the routine chaos, certain things were always clear—musicianship born of knowledge was unfolding and Ms. Carlin’s unique vocals were at the epicenter. Her range reaches from rock to doo-wop but her passion belongs to jazz and the spontaneous creation of music that can’t be replicated and is best experienced live.
Now, having experienced the slipping away of her ensemble and looking at the start of college, Ms. Carlin decided to claim her place in her own music as singer-songwriter. For her first professional release, Ms. Carlin recorded four songs at a Manhattan studio that capture her passion for music, living and love while showcasing the vocals and vision that drove Oliver Lankard to success.
“I needed to do this,” she said, describing the decision to walk away from several tracks already cut as a band and make the move to record a solo CD. “It was obtainable yet felt so far away. I wanted to do it right and had to bring the music closer to home.”
The tracks as a band had been recorded at an area studio that couldn’t produce the quality Ms. Carlin was looking for. So she headed to Manhattan to record and produced the release at Studio Forever Progressive Music. She brought with her four songs that captured her beginnings as a songwriter and her maturity as an evolving musician.
The final cut of “the Agony and Ecstasy” is just more than 16 minutes of music. Each song captures the highs, lows and passion of love affairs that eventually go bad and leave the heart in rubble. Each also puts up front the unique vocals and lyrics that made Shasta stand out from their very first performance. Ms. Carlin’s voice embodies the lilting tones and textured melodies of vocalist Dolores O’Riordan of The Cranberries and the power singing of Grace Slick fronting for The Jefferson Airplane.
The lyrics are personal and revealing. They can be in-your-face obvious or mysterious in meaning. Ms. Carlin said she decided not to flinch and put it all out there.
“The songs and lyrics are intimate and personal,” she said. “My parents read them, my relatives and people I know would hear them. But these are what I’ve experienced so far and this is what I can do right now.”
The CD release party on Saturday at Eastenders is one of her final stops before heading to study jazz theory and composition at Long Island University in Brooklyn. Other gigs have already been lined up for Brooklyn and Manhattan venues. No matter what happens with “the Agony and Ecstasy of,” Ms. Carlin is certain her future will be successful as a singer-songwriter. She just turned down a possibly lucrative contract with a recording company that would have paired her music with the clothing lines of top fashion designers, she said. The reason: creative freedom.
“They wanted to ‘help’ me write songs and said my name would have writing credits,” she said. “I don’t need anyone to write songs or lyrics for me. It didn’t seem like I would have the freedom so I turned it down. I know I’ll be a success—I won’t ever give up, so success is the only option.”
Stephanie Carlin’s music can be found at www.stephaniecarlin.com or www.myspace.com/stephaniecarlinrock. The CD release party will feature songs from “the Agony and Ecstasy of” and other original music by Ms. Carlin. It will be held at 8 p.m. Saturday at Eastenders Coffee House, 40 East Main Street, Riverhead. There is a $5 cover charge.
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hamptons.com, 7/29/08
Hampton Bays - The Very Talented Stephanie Carlin Releases CD
Hampton Bays - The very talented Stephanie Carlin, 18, of Hampton Bays has released her first C.D. entitled "The Agony And Ecstasy Of." The C.D. contains only four tracks ("Rudter Red/Hubbard Waltz," "Liquorish," "Infinity Scars," and "O, Beautiful Thing! The Night Will Keep Us Young"), however, her rich vocals fill each track with a melodic and sometimes haunting rhythm.
Carlin describes herself as "an Indie Folk singer-songwriter," and mentioned that her primary musical influences are Indie Folk singer-songwriters, Elliott Smith and Cat Power.
All four tracks were written by Carlin and reflect her deep commitment to social issues.
Carlin has an intonation in her voice that will become immediately identifiable to present and future fans. The C.D., produced by Patrick Thomas, was mixed and recorded at Studio Progressive Music in New York City during April and May 2008.
Carlin will attend the Long Island University (Brooklyn campus) for Jazz Composition beginning in the fall, and considers herself foremost a vocalist, however, she does play guitar, piano and flute. She has been a songwriter for the last five years, and began playing guitar at 13.
Formerly a member of the Oliver Lankard Band, this is Carlin's first solo effort and she professionally conducts herself with a maturity of songwriting skills, as well as vocal mastery that belies her age.
There will a be C.D. release party held on Saturday, Aug. 9, at 8 p.m. at the East Enders Coffee House at 40 East Main Street in Riverhead.
To hear Carlin's newest tracks go to myspace.com/stephaniecarlinrock.
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