Annie Keating – Bristol County Tides

By starrymag | August 8, 2021

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

 

A) Honest, intimate, soulful. Bittersweet and expansive. The lovechild of John Prine and Lucinda Williams if they’d gotten together?

I’ve always found it very difficult to describe my own music so perhaps I’ll leave that to the listener.

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

A) I’ve got loads of musical influences including Lucinda Williams, the Rolling Stones, Marvin Gaye, Neil Young, Nina Simone and Bob Dylan, but the biggest influence on my over the years and recently has been John Prine. What a songwriter. The last song he wrote before dying from COVID (RIP) was “I Remember Everything” and that song I could listen to a thousand times and never tire of it.

 

Q) How did the pandemic play a role in your new music?

 

A) In the early days of the pandemic, when things were getting very bad in Brooklyn, my family and I packed up the car and headed out to my mom’s cottage in Bristol County Massachusetts. We thought we were going for a week or two but ended up relocating for five months. The song “Half Mast” was one of the first songs I wrote in April, and you can feel the collective shock and pain of the dark, early COVID days.  We were all pretty much on lockdown and you can hear the sadness in the lyrics, “Time is moving slow, thoughts are racing fast nowhere to go, flags at half-mast. Monday brought the sun, Tuesday came the rain, Wednesday I just lost track of the days. World turned upside down, we go on just the same, as things fall apart, we carry on. Days they still start with the sun.” There’s something about that idea of flags being stuck at half-mast everywhere that felt like the right metaphor for that time. We were all in our own kind of mourning and captivity in those early days of the pandemic. Writing these songs was part of the emotional process of navigating what was happening in the world.

Three seasons later, I’d written most of the songs on this album from April to October. They were all inspired by deep connections forged in times of hardship and isolation, with some very kind people we found to be our neighbors on this road in Bristol Country. They befriended us, taught me and my son about river and the tides and I bought a boat and learned to navigate it through the channels where the fresh water meets the salty sea. My dog learned to swim, my boy learned to fish and the city girl in me entirely gave way to the country, captivated by the river and the tides high and low. The human connections born out of pandemic time of isolation combined with the beauty and inspiration of the Bristol County tides and environs shaped me as an artist and each of these songs.

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Nobody Knows.”

 

A) As evidenced by the chorus refrain, “One thing that’s for sure, nothing’s guaranteed. Life’s a ride into uncertainty. I don’t want to waste my time, worrying about tomorrow. What tomorrow’s going to bring, nobody knows,” this song was about grappling with the uncertainty most of us experienced during the early pandemic days. On a personal level, the song explores ways the past can affect and impact the present. The lyrics “There’s a little box locked in my chest, a vestige of an untapped past, I tried to put you in that little box too but it broke apart like a skin outgrew, the past I buried deep beneath rattled like a ghost in me” explore the power of our tapped (and untapped) pasts, the ways we try to put uncomfortable feelings away but ultimately can’t bury what needs to be reckoned with – truth has a way of surfacing.

 

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

 

A) I think that uncertainty (especially in the context of the last year) is a universal feeling, as is the idea of the past informing the present (the two main themes of the song). If people can relate to these emotions, I think they’re more drawn into the song. Also, it’s an honest and real expression – nothing fake or dressed up about it. I think people respond to genuine, intimate and heartfelt songs that are not overly sentimental or sappy, but real. Teddy Kumpel, my producer, and the band also lay down beautiful guitar tracks and instrumentation that gives the song an irresistible, wide but intimate and compelling sound.

 

Q) What is your song writing process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

 

A) I write from an emotional place and these songs were deeply rooted in an uncertain, transformative but also an inspired time. Something deep in me woke up during the time I wrote this album and I think you can feel it in the songs. There’s a physical yearning, vulnerability, joy and sadness that comes through on this album more than any other I’ve written – like you can feel the emotional journey and identify with it through your own transformative experiences. I usually need to have the music and lyrics come to fruition together, as for me they often weave around one another, impacting the songwriting as a whole. But that being said, sometimes I’ll get lyric ideas without having a guitar in hand and jot them down. And sometimes I just let melody ideas flow on the guitar without knowing the lyrics. But, eventually, they have to come together to form the final song; I’ve never written lyrics totally separate from music or all the music without lyrics.

 

Q) How much of hand do you have in the production of your music?

 

A) I have a big hand in it, usually, but on this album it was almost effortless in that my producer Teddy Kumpel and I agreed on all of it. Honestly, while we had moments of asking questions, discussing and exploring, there was not one moment where we disagreed. We were in sync, and I feel so grateful as he is the most talented musician/producer I’ve ever met.

 

Q) What are some themes you explore on your new LP Bristol County Tides?

 

A) Love, longing, uncertainty, change, loss, adventure, the past, the present and growth. We are always growing. Things are always changing (like the tides) but I tried to lean into that and embrace it instead of fearing it.

I remember when I’d heard that songwriter John Prine was sick and in the hospital. I played his songs every day on my guitar back in April and May of 2020. I started videotaping them on my phone and posting just as a way of sending the love out there. Prine’s songwriting also inspired this new album, Bristol County Tides. I remember Jason Isbell did an interview with Prine in which he said the secret was to “stay vulnerable.” I was particularly moved by that because often — especially with men — vulnerability can be seen as a weakness. But Prine realized it’s a strength and that notion found its way into the liner notes of my new album where I say, “In the wise words of John Prine (RIP dearest songwriter lost to COVID), “Stay vulnerable.” It is an artist’s one real job – to remain vulnerable open and true.” This album was my best attempt at that.

 

Q) What tracks on the LP challenged you the most to create?

 

A) Probably “Shades of Blue” and “Goodbye” because they were emotional sad and painful to write (those are more about loss than any of the other songs). “Lucky 13” was hard instrumentally – I had the guitar lick in my head but couldn’t find the right way to play it on the guitar. So, I kind of hummed/sang what I was hearing to my producer and in like five minutes he sent back a better demo with the perfect electric guitar riff of what I was hearing in my head!

 

Q) How did you shake off a long day in the studio for this LP?

 

A) To be honest, recording this album was one of the great pleasures of my life. I loved every minute of working with Teddy and the band. We recorded at Atomic Sound with Matt Shane engineering and it’s a wonderful place to record – it used to be a fire station in Red Hook Brooklyn – converted to recording studio. We recorded tracks live together and once we got the right sounding track, that was pretty much it. Old school, live band recording together with very little overdubs.

 

Q) What do you hope listeners take away from checking out Bristol County Tides?

 

A) I hope they find human connection, kindness, some hope, comfort and/or inspiration. Music is about connection to me. Music has and continues to make me feel less alone in the world. When I connect with a great song, I feel more hopeful and alive.

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

 

A) Jalopy Theatre and School of Music in Brooklyn holds a special place in my heart. It’s a magical, intimate venue with a timeless, analogue feel. I’m on the Board of Directors and teach there a lot as well. It’s kind of a home away from home. Other than that, mostly I’ve toured internationally and have been lucky to play glorious little stages and venues in Italy, England, Scotland, the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden. The Buscadero Festival in Italy and the Maverick Fest in the UK were a total blast as was Take Root Festival in the Netherlands.  I’ll be on tour in Europe April 2022 for four to five weeks and I can’t wait !

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

 

A) I wish Jason Isbell, Keith Richards or Lucinda Williams would give me a call to collaborate. [laughs] But I don’t think that’s happening just yet. I’ve not done much co-writing, just my EP Can’t Stand Still on which I wrote several songs with Dan Mills who’s a great songwriter. Mostly I’d just like to continue collaborating with my team (producer/guitarist Teddy Kumpel, Matt Shane on engineering/mixing and the outstanding band who joined me to record this new album: Drummer Steve Williams lays down the most simple but luscious soulful grooves, having worked The Digable Planets, Sade, David Byrne, and others. NY bassist, Richard Hammond (the original Bassist for Hamilton) has just the right feel and touch on both electric and upright bass, having worked with the likes of Angelique Kidjo, Marshall Crenshaw, Joan Osborne and others. And then there’s genius Todd Caldwell on the organ, piano and melodica with the most soulful and emotionally resonant touch (he also tours with Crosby, Stills and Nash).

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

 

A) I’m not a big fan of social media (lots of smoke and mirrors, not enough genuine content), but I do think it’s an important tool for sharing music and reaching new people. My social media presence tripled with the release of this new album, in part because I got Instagram verified and also because a social media focus was a focus of my PR team. As a result, I’ve had hundreds and hundreds of messages from people about the new songs, which has been really gratifying. Messages ranging from DJs in other countries wanting to access and play tracks to booking agents and just regular listeners from all over who were moved by a song and wanted to share their experience with me. For all of that, I see social media as a useful tool, but also one that people can get too focused on – I’d still rather spend time writing/making music than tweeting – but it can be distracting and consuming.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

 

A) Thank you! Oh, and if you love a song, pass it on. I’m not backed by a label or any kind of machine network, so fans really are the best way to get the songs out there – sharing on a playlist or with a friend means a lot. Also, call your radio station and request a tune or visit my website to learn about show dates, new music or contact me from there anniekeating.com. I am deeply grateful to all those who listen and share the music love.