http://www.venuszine.com/articles/music/features/6431/Carley_Wolf_A_musical_jewel_in_wolfs_clothing
Carley Wolf: A musical jewel in wolf’s clothing
By Marisa Iacobucci
Published: September 29th, 2009 | 12:00am
When singer-songwriter Carley Wolf says she is “in tune with nature,” that’s putting things rather mildly. Raised in the country outside of Austin among a large family — including a music and animal–loving dad and pet wolves — it’s more natural to describe her as being madly in tune with nature and music. Possessed with a wild passion and a wandering gypsy soul, she’s about to break loose with her debut album, Set Sail.
Music is in Wolf’s blood. She started taking piano lessons at the age of seven, but she was already jamming with her dad long before then. Wolf plays piano, guitar, mandolin, upright bass, banjo, and anything else she can think of — figuring the more she learns on one instrument, the more she’ll learn about others. “I can’t help it!” she bursts, as one might before confessing to an addiction. “I can’t rest if I don’t play instruments.”
Wolf began writing music at the age of 12, around the same time she started her first all-girl band, the Clabber Girls. She went on to play in band after band and, by the time she graduated from high school, released her first EP thanks to a cousin who gave her studio time as a graduation gift.
While studying audio engineering at Texas State, Wolf completed a documentary thesis about her family’s musical history called Music Through the Bloodline. On her journey through Mexico, she discovered that her great-grandmother began playing harp at age three, composed her own songs, and eventually opened a dance school in her town.
It was while she was in college that Wolf also began writing the songs for Set Sail. She recorded the songs last year at the Troubadour in Lockhart, Texas with Steve Collins and John Konja, and the result is an impressive body of work for a “newcomer.” Using genres such as folk, rock, and bluegrass, Wolf sings with the chops of an old gypsy soul.
“My favourite song on the album is ‘Set Sail,’” she says. “It’s about the journey through life and about trusting that the universe will take care of you, no matter what happens. I wrote it when I was graduating from college and going through a lot of changes.”
Wolf counts some of her musical influence as Tom Waits, Lucinda Williams, and Ella Fitzgerald — whom Wolf was first introduced to while researching jazz artists before putting out her first record of old blues songs. She also finds inspiration by attending live music performances near Austin, jamming in different groups, and supporting some of her local friends — such as up-and-coming jazz chanteuse, Kat Edmonson.
When asked how her music speaks to the spirit of these times, Wolf explains, “I’m not a political writer. I play music and hope to share my joy of playing music with others. I invite people to take a journey into a song, and if it helps people feel good and escape from the everyday worries and things going on in the world, then I know my music has gotten through to them.”
