Winter
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Luna finds her home
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Rambles.net review
Carley Wolf
Set Sail (independent 2009)
by Jerome Clark
One phrase comes to mind when one hears Set Sail -- "amiably eccentric" -- and another when one seeks to describe Carley Wolf's persona -- "hippie chick." I mean them both in the most generous possible way.
Judging from her photos, Wolf cannot have been born when the first generation of hippies roamed the Earth. Still, she must have something of the experience in her genes. A native Texan, she writes that she was "raised in the country with a loving musical family and a pack of wolves." Given her last name -- if that is indeed her birth name -- that can be read other than literally. Still, one of her videos shows her cavorting with ... well, they look rather like wolves, albeit with the friendly domestic character of dogs.
In any event, what matters for our purposes is that Set Sail is well above the usual singer-songwriter fare. Wolf has an impressively inventive musical imagination, in which she integrates multiple genres (jazz, gypsy rhythms, folk, pop) into a distinctively personal style. Her voice -- both literal and metaphorical -- is rich, supple and hard to resist whether it is waxing philosophical, gloomy, erotic or playful. Here and there, the songs turn lyrically and emotionally complex, but they are always accessible, resounding with a range of influences which ordinarily one doesn't expect to emanate from a single disc. I don't recall, for example, hearing anybody else who seems -- on occasion anyway -- like both Rickie Lee Jones and the Incredible String Band.
Multi-instrumentalist Wolf gets able backing from a four-piece band. One member is the ubiquitous fiddler Katy Rose Cox, and there's cello player David "Deemo" Moss. Jonathan Konya and Steve Collins handle mostly percussive instruments. Together, they create a shimmering, atmospheric sound while leaving the singing very much up front. I'm not sure you could call this "folk-rock" exactly. Perhaps the title song comes closest, and "Rocking Chair" is at least vaguely reminiscent of something traditional, maybe the Carter Family in an alternate reality. But whatever else it might be, Set Sail is among the most beautiful and intelligent -- and, in its own highly idiosyncratic fashion, rooted -- acoustic-pop records I've heard in the last year.
Interview in Champaign IL
Catching up with Carley Wolf and The Howls
By Justine Chan - Buzz Writer
Carley Wolf is both adorable and incredibly talented. Her voice has the plunge of high pure sweetness and her music is a captivating volcano of the crazy, the witty, the catchy, the eclectic, the honest and the ineffable. With the recent release of her album Set Sail, she and her Howls are themselves setting sail from Austin, Texas, for the first time as a fivesome, on a tour across the country to share their music and see the world.
buzz: What is the story behind your band name, Carley Wolf and The Howls? Is that your real name?
Carley Wolf: Yes, it is my real name. I chose “The Howls” because howls are my favorite sound in the whole world, and it just seemed to fit.
buzz: You play a number of instruments, including the banjo and the mandolin. How are you able to incorporate each of their sounds into your music?
CW: When I was recording, I was able to layer the different instruments in the songs and that was neat, but it is so much different when we’re playing live. My bass player, Gary James, can actually play guitar as well. During the show, we switch off so that sometimes I’m playing guitar, and sometime he will and then I can play all my different instruments. It works out nicely that way. I’d actually really like to play piano too. I have a piano at home, just no keyboard to take to shows.
buzz: How would you describe your sound?
CW: My sound is a mixture, I would say, of American roots music to jazz to folk to Appalachian music to gypsy music. I try to blend it all in a unique way so that sometimes it sounds like pop, and other times it has a darker, even classical sound.
buzz: You have played with other bands in the past. How is it different for you now that you’re with The Howls?
CW: It’s a really exciting time for me because I have my first album out and this is going to be our first big tour as a band together. For the first time, I’m in charge, and I love it — it is like my baby. It is such a dream come true to have my own band playing all my own music because I’d always wanted to do it my way. In the other bands, I was playing a lot of old time music but now, our music is a lot closer to me in that I feel I can be so much more invested in the music and the creative process.
buzz: How is the tour going? Do you have anything special in store for the Champaign concert?
CW: Right now, we’re still in the preparation stages — getting merchandise and contacting radio stations, trying to get the word out, basically. The past month we had a bunch of local gigs in Austin and to be touring outside of Texas is awesome. Do we have anything particularly special for the Champaign show? I guess just come and find out! I know we’ll be selling a lot of handmade stuff — I’m a very handmade person. There are screen printed tees, little zines that I’ve made, and other silly stuff like that.
Be sure to catch Carley Wolf and The Howls on Thursday, Dec. 10 at 8:00 p.m. at Mike ‘n’ Molly’s. Carley is joined by special guests Hathaways and Megan Johns.
Review in Des Moines IA
CD REVIEWS
By Michael Swanger scenescribe@mchsi.com
Carley Wolf
“Set Sail”
Independent release
Texas music is a melting pot of musical forms, as we’re reminded by Austin-based singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist Carley Wolf’s new album, “Set Sail,” a stylistic mix of gypsy, folk, Mexican and Americana music. She and her band, The Howls, jangle their way through “Gypsy Soul Blues” and “To Bee” with the spirit of an itinerant group of musicians playing their way through the world for tips. But true to Wolf’s eclectic musical form, she and The Howls are equally at ease downshifting and gracefully gliding through tender ballads like “Cold Dead Fingers” and the chilling “Funeral Pyre.” Wolf’s acoustic sound has been compared to the likes of Tom Waits, Norah Jones, Lucinda Williams, Cat Power and Feist. But her lilting and breathy vocals remind me of Iowa’s own Iris DeMent.
Residency in January at Momo's!
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Monday, November 30, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Winter the Wolf
Friday, November 27, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
Texas Platters - Girlie Action
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Review on Collected Sounds!
Review by Anna Maria Stjärnell
Carley Wolf makes her debut with a confident, eclectic set that’s likely to attract many fans.
Opener Gypsy Soul Blues is raucous and fun, Wolf’s vocals set against a cute backing.
Run into the Sun has a sweet melody and a vocal that rapidly makes itself known.
Funeral Pyre is dark and dramatic in a Marissa Nadler way. It’s hushed rather than shouted, but the tension’s there and the sadness palpable.
Whole Hearted Lover is upbeat and lovely and shows off Wolf’s skills at their best.
Her debut’s a real treat.
Review on Blurt-Online!
Carley Wolf
(self-released)
Americana aficionados may find it faintly ludicrous, if not aggravating, that Norah Jones announces she's ditching MOR pop for roots music and every journalist on the planet wants to lick her piano pedals, but across the land deserving unknowns with far more authenticity and pizzazz than Jones continue to toil as, well, unknowns. I mention this only because (a) Jones is in the news right now; (b) and Austin songstress Carley Wolf has been compared to Jones in past reviews. Not necessarily without cause; at times she shares that same vulnerable, ingénue quality that's guaranteed to melt hearts. And her style touches upon pop, folk, country, jazz and even classical at times - a winning hybrid, just like Jones.
Still, one could do far worse than to take Wolf on her own terms. She terms her music "gypsy folk rock," and the jaunty, strummy opening track is called "Gypsy Soul Blues," so if label we must, those ain't too far off. In fact, "gypsy" may be the operative term here, as Wolf demonstrates her wanderlust across the course of these ten tracks. Abetted by players on loan from the Belleville Outfit, Shotgun Party and The Blue Hit, Wolf shines on such highlights as the gently lilting "Cold Dead Fingers," a countryish ballad reminiscent of some of Alejandro Escovedo's strings-laden compositions; the brushed-percussion, soul-jazz infused title track; and the European-flavored "Whole Hearted Lover," and uptempo blend of swing, blues and café culture. Wolf's a gifted multiinstrumentalist, by the way, playing at various points guitar, upright bass, mandolin, banjo, pump organ and keyboards.
Throughout, her expressive voice, terminally sexy but with an understated quality that gets under your skin through a slow process of seduction, remains the focus (credit to collaborators and coproducers Steve Collins and Jonathan Konya for recognizing that aural asset). Like her hero Tom Waits (she'll confirm that statement), it's a memorable voice that takes on its own singular identity, and as she charts her life, her loves and maybe even a few losses, too, you'll want to follow her path.
A musical nomad by any estimation, Wolf - like the cover rendering by artist Jet Whitt - proves to be a tempting mystery worth unraveling. Surprises await.
Standout Tracks: "Whole Hearted Lover," "Run Into the Sun," "Cold Dead Fingers" FRED MILLS
Carley Wolf is currently touring with her band The Howls. Dates at her MySpace page: www.myspace.com/carleywolf.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Veteran's Day
Monday, November 9, 2009
Whole Wheat Radio!
Check this out!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
Pilgrilm
Pilgrim
Your footsteps are the path and only that.
Pilgrim, there is no path, you make a path as you walk.
As you walk you make a path
and when you turn to look back you see the path on which you'll never walk again.
Pilgrim
There is no path only starlight on the sea.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
The Howls at Jo's Oct 15th
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Write up on CD release concert!
Check it out at:
http://wholetthecarneyout.blogspot.com/
Carley Wolf "Sets Sail" at the Cactus Cafe
Written by Meggan Carney
A couple of weeks ago I got a text message from a young lady I had the pleasure to meet last year at a Grammy party held in the Gibson Show Room @ Penn Field, S. Austin. The memo simply read, "Hey buddy! Come out tomorrow night for my CD release party at the Cactus Cafe." I thought it was a very cool and casual way of getting the message out to fellow music lovers and artists listed in her phone log. I soon found myself terribly interested in discovering what singer/songwriter Carley Wolf had accomplished in the last year or so from the last time I visited her myspace and checked out a few of her YouTube clips.
Being a songwriter in this town, I myself have come to know and respect the reputation of a songwriter’s mysteriousness: and it usually comes with hiding under a rock from all known humanity for quite sometime. (Wow, you look like you could use some sunlight. Let’s go get some ice cream.) And then, BAM! We seemingly come out of nowhere, (ice cream waffle cone in hand) with a bigger perspective on life, a college-ruled spiral filled with original lyrics which turn into remarkable, original songs, and if we are blessed, a band ready to play the hell out of them!
So be as it may, I knew of Carley Wolf, a young woman from Texas State University (go Bobcats! rarr) with a memorable appearance and style, but I sure didn’t know Carley Wolf, let alone her musical endeavors. So when I received the cute little text-vite, I had little or no idea what I was in for.
I RSVP’d a prompt “See you there,” to the t-vite. I arrived solo the following night at the tiny venue which was tucked away in the labyrinth of UT. The university is, after all, a small city itself. As I approached the door, there was a sign sitting on a table that said ‘Carley Wolf CD Release Party, $5’(Money makes the world go ‘round.) As I was pulling out my wallet I took notice to the precisely placed records titled "Set Sail", up for grabs that Ms Wolf had promised her enduring fans.
When I walked into the atmosphere, there was only standing-room left, the band had just finished setting up and the musicians were ready to commence. From left to right, a fine percussionist who was sitting in with Wolf’s band that evening, Josh Halpern, (who happens to be the rhythm machine in my group as well), then a kit player toward the back who dually sings and writes as well, Jessie Torissi. Next were musicians whom I have yet to meet: A fiddle player, cellist, and stand up bassist added impressive ingredients into the mix.
There was an excitable drone coming from the audience.. showing signs that they were gearin' up for some entertainment. After a short and relaxed introduction, Wolf gave the signal and suddenly, deep and unusual melodies were filling the room. The opening song instantly brought me to a time and place where gypsies danced around moonlit bonfires on European seasides. The band was well-rehearsed. Everyone on stage had a mischievous smile across their face that matched the rich, up-beat piece of music they were creating. Wolf’s voice is charming and pure, and somewhat childlike, telling tales of love, emotion, and acceptance from a twenty-something’s point of view. She even swapped strings with her stand up bass player and did an entire song slapping away. That was an impressive spectacle, and the audience was delighted.
My overall thoughts were that if Wolf’s artistic and imaginative expressions continue down this path, who knows where her vessel may 'set sail' in the future? Wherever she goes, Carley Wolf will be floating atop a sea of success.
Rock on, Carley.
Official Website: http://www.carleywolf.com/
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/carleywolf
Over and Out.
Messages from bottles..
