MJ Bishop is an acoustic solo artist out of Seattle. Her music is described as folk Americana with attitude; lyric-driven melancholy that's gutsy, introspective, organic, emotive, acoustic, and laced with twang. A modern-day Patsy Cline whose voice has been seasoned to Americana perfection. She has been compared to k.d. lang, Emmylou Harris, Natalie Merchant, Kim Richey, Dar Williams, Rory Block, Indigo Girls, Cowboy Junkies. Her influences include Patsy Cline, Hank Williams, k.d. lang, Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris, Lucinda Williams.
Pull of the Moon, MJ's long-awaited third album (set for release in late May 2008), sees her rolling up her sleeves and plunging into the grittiness that is Americana, through the sweet, familiar melodies of folk. The added trim around the edges reveals her deep roots in country, jazz, rock and pop.
On these 12 tracks, MJ's unwavering smoky vocals start from the dirt in the crawl space, climb the stairs to the kitchen, the bedrooms, the attic, and finally blast through the roof. She takes you on a journey starting with the evocative opener "Up North" (about her small home town in Michigan's Upper Peninsula), weaving a story around the life of a guitar, life's pushes and pulls, love, loss, heartache, freedom from the nine-to-five job, and the appeal of the open road. You will be conflicted by the lyrics as they first lure you with the promise of good times before abruptly dropping you into a chasm of loneliness and heartache.
MJ is set to tour Summer 2008 (Tennessee, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina) to share and promote her new CD.
Producing a pretty big sound armed with only a single guitar and her vocal chords, MJ's songs leave you humming well after the last note is sung. Personally connecting with the audience is important to MJ, and her charm, musicianship and professionalism shine during her performances. Entertaining runs in the family and she claims to be addicted to the stage.
MJ has performed steadily since 1998 in and around Seattle, and has also taken her music to Oregon, Idaho, Texas, California, Montana, Michigan and Florida. She has shared the stage with many Northwest musicians, including The Starlings, Christy McWilson, The Paperboys (Canada), ThorNton Creek, Moe Provencher, Nancy K. Dillon, Eva Tree, Matt Price, and Brandi Carlile.
Combining deep roots in acoustic music with a maturing country sensibility, MJ creates a genre that is, in many ways, her own.
This concert will be 7-9 pm on Tuesday, June 24th at the Hubbardston Library. Depending on the weather, it may be inside or outside, so please bring your camp chairs just in case.
Ice Cream and refreshments will be available.
Tickets are $15 per adult, for MJ. $20 at the door.
Library donations are appreciated.
Learn more about MJ Bishop at her web site:
http://mjbishopband.com/
or
http://myspace.com/mjbishopband
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