Album Notes

Sorcha is a performing songwriter and guitarist whose voice packs a luscious punch from wails to whispers. Her folk roots are infused with blues, jazz, and funk and her lyrics explore themes of personal and social significance. Her latest CD "Walk It Once" was released in December 2006, her debut album "Balance" in 2001.

Raised on the ocean in rural Downeast Maine in an arts-driven family, there were always instruments lying around the house to play. Early musical influences include her parents' traditional folk background, her father's funk pasttime, and her brother's exhaustive jazz collection. At age 5, she won the Arcady Music Festival's Young People's Competition playing classical works on recorder. Seven years later, she began composing her own music; her folk-pop has evolved into a fiery, funky and charming new sound.

Sorcha also contributes production support to live events and studio recordings. Her most recent live production was Art of Autonomy, a collaborative performance piece fusing her original music with the video, choreography, and visual art of three other local artists. Other credits include Production Associate on four internationally distributed Telarc Blues records, Assistant Engineer on three Maine-produced albums, and Production Assistant for Accord Music Group’s annual Saltwater Music Festival. As a board member of the Maine Songwriters Association, she supports the local songwriting community. As a performer, she charms audiences at clubs, festivals, weddings, and benefit events.


Press Quotes:

“Her groovin' guitar playing and luminous voice were the two driving forces behind her jazz-folk sensibilities.”
- Lou Grassi, Portland Press Herald

“The vocals are sultry and jazzy”
- Sam Pfeifle, Portland Pheonix

“Sorcha Merrill…has true poise, pure and simple. Her themes are gutsy… Her songs are very well crafted, honest and soulful. She has inventive, unforced rhyme schemes… She has a powerful, chesty voice with tons of low-end punch. There [is] significant variety between songs. Sorcha is truly refreshing.”
- Glenn Torrico, Maine Songwriters Association

“One particularly impressive performer was Sorcha Merrill. Armed with her acoustic guitar, Merrill drew a large group of listeners to the stage [at the 2005 Old Port Festival]. She performed original songs and demanded the audience’s attention with her strong vocal rhythms and spicy stage presence.”
- Jessica Dafni, Good Times Magazine