Inside the Blues - Mare Edstrom |
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Copyright © 2004 Spiritone Records
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Mare Edstrom
About the CD
In her first blues project, Inside the Blues, Mare Edstrom displays her vocal virtuosity with a tribute to the blues legends who have been such a key component in the development of her vocal style. Songs by Robert Johnson, T-Bone Walker, and Muddy Waters are spiced with the gospel blues of Blind Willie Johnson, the jump blues of Little Esther, and the Piedmont style blues of Blind Willie McTell. This work presents an exciting new perspective on the blues while maintaining a vintage brand of roadhouse authenticity.
Highlights from reviews! (CLICK HERE to see full reviews)
"Mare is a blues voice who is sure to make an impact on the industry"
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BestFemaleMusicians.com
"You could shelf this album nicely next to your best Muddy Waters and sandwich them right alongside Robert Johnson and T-Bone Walker all of which she reinterprets here"
- Smother.net
"Mare Edstrom should have titled her CD The Blues are Inside her instead of Inside the Blues"
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Keith "Muzikman" Hannaleck
"Edstrom has a wide, vocal range and a fervor to sing the blues"
- Kweevak's Tracks
"Success shouldn't be a problem for Edstrom, who can belt out the classics with the best of them."
- NY Rock Street Beat
"Mare rises to the challenge, delivering an above-average performance that is both faithful to the blues and gives real passion that the blues deserves."
- EarCandy Magazine
"Mare Edstrom is a welcome addition to the contemporary blues scene. On Inside The Blues (Spiritone Records), she pays tribute to many well loved blues artists and their songs, adding a unique dimension with her rich, expressive voice."
- One Way Magazine
"I'm impressed. Mare Edstrom is not only a very good vocalist but also an imaginative artist. Arrangements on her new CD are just great. Songs like "Stop Breaking Down" or "Got Mud In My Soul" blew me away."
- Przemek Draheim, Poland, Blues & Gospel Radio Host
"This work presents an exciting new take on the blues while maintaining a vintage brand of roadhouse authenticity."
- Blogging the Blues
"[Mare] has a powerful and broad-ranged voice that’s not your typical blues growl, but actually works well on this eclectic collection of songs...Producer Kenn Fox adds some superb guitar and bass throughout the album, is responsible for all the arrangements and wrote the two original tunes...The sheer beauty and intensity of Edstrom’s vocal coupled with the imaginative arrangements makes this special."
- Mick Skidmore, Play Blues Guitar
"...It’s clear that [Mare] comes to the blues through a different door than most: Instead of the standard gut-deep growl or jazzy rasp, Edstrom uses a straight-up delivery with the occasional downright pretty flourish....At first blush, she seems more comfortable with modern numbers such as Chris Smither’s 'I Feel the Same,' but it becomes clear that Edstrom is perfectly at home with the hoariest of chestnuts, too...Edstrom can play it straight, also, as she does on Memphis Minnie’s 'North Memphis Blues' with pleasing results...[the album] has a way of subtly surprising you. For instance, three of the four final tracks are straight blues filled with late-night rowdiness. Then, Edstrom wraps up with an unconventional take on Blind Willie Johnson’s 'In My Time of Dyin' that freshens the song’s message and is, in its own way, equally potent."
--Genevieve Williams, Blues Review magazine
"...Although a pianist, Mare is above all a singer, such as those who first pioneered the vocal traditions of jazz and R&B, striking like lightning into the original purity of the blues, serious and intense. Ranging over several octaves, capable of pushing her voice to the edge of breaking, sometimes rough, sometimes sweet, Mare Edstrom seems carried by the sulfurous spirit of a vocal journey that she sometimes takes to the extreme, transporting to new levels the songs placed on this very beautiful album...The frail young woman doesn't hesitate to transfigure certain titles into hip hop-influenced rock, or to spice others with well-mixed flavors, or to return to the roots of an authentic road band. A very exciting disc and the image of a new modern blues sensation. To be classified among the great Ladies of R&B and of the Blues, those of the past and those of the future."
--Francis Rateau, Crossroads (French rock magazine)
