Steve Kattenbraker
Chehalis, Washington, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2004 | SELF
Music
Press
songwriter to take seriously…poetic lyrics… expertly played acoustic guitar… Check him out now; he’ll restore your faith in the singer-songwriter genre.” (earvolution.com) - Earvolution.com
It's sort of interesting. I went through 3 stages of overall feeling with this album. It went like: 1. I really liked it. 2. I disliked it and was wary of it. 3. I came to terms with my misconceptions from "2" and liked it. Let me explain.
Steven Kattenbraker creates softly sung, pastoral scenes of contemplative lonliness, somewhat indicative of his earlier home in the Midwest (he now resides in southwest Washington). Sounds like a lot of singer-songwriters, doesn't it? But he has a great, light touch with his acoustic guitar, aspirated singing style, and atmospheric accoutrements. That atmosphere is the spice by which he seasons the long dusty folk travels that the listener is treated to. It's more folk than country, less rock than americana. Songs like "Santiago" are bleak and all the better because of it, with seagulls whistling desolately in the background.
However. The problem for me came when I started to read his bio, and sure enough I was infected by the allusions to Elliott Smith. Suddenly, I began to feel that the music was very derivative of the late singer's style, especially in the strumming of the 1st song, "Take Out The Knife" (even more weirdly, because of the nature of Smith's demise) which sounds a lot like Needle in the Hay. Those long, drawn-out lyrical passages became a mixture of Either/Or and Roman Candle. In addition, the mention of Beck in the bio made me reach for similes again... could this be Sea Change all over again? And hadn't I heard that folk picking and chords in Dylan or more recently, Iron and Wine? Hmm...
Well, the mind (or rather ears) does play its meddlesome tricks. When I regrouped and listened again I came to realize that Kattenbraker isn't so much copying the artists mentioned as much as honoring them. And give the guy credit, he has some great songs here and though some may dismiss the style as having been copied to the umpteenth power already, I've come to disagree with that. For instance, "Pinus" has a strange and slow electronic freakout section in the middle of it which is more Red House Painters or American Analog Set than Elliott Smith. And who can fault the way his vocal lines are drawn out long and true? At least it fits the music correctly. And that hushed atmosphere in which his songs exist is at once both familiar and intricately unique. Strange. But, in the end, I loved the album for it's straightforward approach and because it reminded me of many artists that I like without completely copying them note for note. Familiarity breeds such a wonderful comfort quilt, as long as you don't suffocate yourself with it. - shmat.com
"...part Eliott Smith, part L. Cohen, as run through the production wringer of Daniel Ash…Kattenbraker’s baritone voice is pleasant and soothing. The guitar work sweet and mellow and, might I add, deftly played…” (Portland’s Music Liberation Project) - Portland's Music Liberation Project
“...Throughout this self-titled album, he prods gently but insistently, persistently. The tension you feel during your first listen is his dusky but irrepressible voice loosening your mind and body... The strange, wispy sounds that occasionally permeate the soundscape... as in the excellent instrumental ["Finally"], help him to work you all over. He gets the low end. He gets the murky things. He hits all the important places...You'll listen a second time just to extend the feeling you got as you finished your first spin, and you'll listen a third time because there's a lot to love here." - splendidezine.com
Being there for Buckley
November 25, 2005|By Kevin Pang, Tribune staff reporter
140
He strummed gently and began to whisper. He sang an original, "Everything's Perfectly Well and Good." He stared deep into her eyes. She leaned in, tilting her ears as if to let his words flow in easier.
Silvi, also 20 and like Daunno, a student at New York University, was the reason her boyfriend was playing.
She had e-mailed Cameron a week earlier. In the e-mail, she wrote how big an influence Jeff Buckley was on her boyfriend. It would mean a lot to get tickets to the sold-out show, or better yet, even play in it. She sent links to tracks Daunno recorded. Silvi thought nothing of the e-mail when she clicked send.
The next morning, Silvi received an e-mail from Cameron. An artist had to cancel last minute. He liked what he heard of Daunno. Cameron invited him to play at the show.
"It's fate," Silvi explained.
Daunno would open the show on the first night, and perform third from last the next night. Though not even of legal drinking age, he bantered confidently with the audience and cracked jokes--much in the style of Buckley, who was known for his razor-sharp, even wicked wit.
Still, Daunno exuded gratefulness. "Things like this really make my life amazing," he told the audience. "I absolutely wouldn't be the person or the musician I am had it not been for the man. So thank God for Jeff Buckley. Happy 39th birthday."
And then he sang.
He performed an original song, as well as covers of Buckley's "I Want Someone Badly" and "So Real." Daunno paused during the middle of that last song, turned to Silvi, who was videotaping the show, and told her in front of everyone, "I love you." The room sighed.
The night became a celebration of all things Buckley; artists came from Washington D.C., Seattle, and a few blocks away on Western Avenue.
There was Cynthia Lin, who stomped her way through an a capella treatment of "Be My Husband." There was Gaz Twist, who spent more than $2,000 to travel here from London. He would perform a knee-buckling, soul-shaking version of "Grace." There was Brad Peterson, a friend of Buckley and in attendance at his Uncommon Ground show in 1994. Peterson broke his own rule of not covering Jeff Buckley songs by closing the night with "Lover, You Should Have Come Over." Tears welled in the eyes of several in the audience. Daunno held his girlfriend close throughout.
"Too young to hold on
And too old to just break free and run ..."
One person present only in spirit was Jeff Buckley's mother, Mary Guibert, who attended two Uncommon Ground tribute shows in previous years. She'd much rather maintain her distance, instead allowing her son's music to speak for her.
But she called the yearly show in this cozy coffeehouse steps from Wrigley Field "the gold standard" of tributes.
Sometimes, she wonders how her son would have reacted to all this attention.
"Jeff would have been totally embarrassed, but he would have loved everybody there," Guibert said. "He'd probably weep first, then laugh a lot. He'd then run around and kiss everybody in the room, then break out the guitar and start singing other people's songs. The whole room would be singing along."
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Hear some more from the Buckley artists
To hear the 8th Annual Jeff Buckley Tribute in its entirety, visit iTunes Music Store and www.uncommonground.com beginning in December.
Uncommon Ground is located at 3800 N. Clark St. (corner of Clark and Grace; 773-929-3680).
Some upcoming shows: 8 p.m. Friday, Jeff Libman; 7 p.m. Saturday, Open Mike Storytelling with Jim Pfitzer and Megan Wells; 8 p.m. Sunday, Annie Higgins.
For more on performers at the 8th Annual Jeff Buckley Tribute:
Straw Dogs
www.strawdogs.com
Steve Kattenbraker
www.stevenkattenbraker.com
Dyna
www.myspace.com/dynamusic
Cynthia Lin
www.cynthialin.com
Old Dog Music
www.olddogmusic.com
Brad Peterson
www.bradpeterson.com
Gaz Twist
www.gaztwist.com
Automatic Pilot
www.jameslaczkowski.com
Justin Sconza
www.waltermeego.com
Brice Woodall
www.bwpmusic.com
Damon Daunno
www.myspace.com/damondaunno
-- K.P.
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kpang@tribune.com - Chicago Tribune
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
Recent projects and accomplishments:
-Collaborator on “Of Great and Mortal Men” (Standard Recording Co.) with M. Kozelek, members of Califone, Sufjan Stevens band, Cake, Low, Wooden Wand, Rosie Thomas and more.
-Regional radioplay: KEXP, KAOS, KINK, KBOO multiple online/podcasts
-Film: Hineini-Irena Fayngold (Red Fez Records)
Raised in the deep south, Steven witnessed the intriguing paradox of ‘southern hospitality’ with the enmity brought about by religious, class, racial, and gender misunderstanding. It was perhaps at this point that his desire to observe and intent to portray the subtle ironies of human existence was germinated.
Steven spent most of the 90’s in the Midwest touring regionally with outfits playing music ranging from math rock to jazz. A time of immense musical discovery, Steven benefited by collaborating and sharing stages (from coffee houses in Iowa City to legendary clubs in Chicago) with a host of talented musicians. With a voracious musical appetite Steven digested and studied styles ranging from Mahler, to Wes Montgomery, to Bill Monroe; all of which have melded to influence his unique compositional approach to harmony, melody, and counterpoint. With a literary interest no less varied, spanning from Sholokhov to Salinger to Sandburg, his verse is ripe with cryptic wit and enchanting imagery.
Continuing his ‘journey’ to the left coast Steven spent several years in the border region of New Mexico training and working as a paramedic. He witnessed and shared in the full spectrum of human emotion: from the sheer terror of a violent injury, to the shock and dread of suddenly losing a soul mate, to the exhilaration of hearing a newborn’s first cry. For better or worse, countless scenes are firmly emblazoned in his memory; some that haunt, some that inspire, but all adding to the human experience of which Steven endeavors to illustrate.
Now safely in the beautiful Northwest, the time and travel worn portmanteau is now being mined of its rich and boundless material. Steven’s self-titled CD has received steady airplay on such stations as the world-renown KEXP while his recorded and live performances have been met with handsome press. His melody and wordplay humbly garner comparisons to Elliott Smith, Sam Beam, and Leonard Cohen. Complicating today’s genre boxing, his complex and dynamic instrumentation and recording techniques have drawn comparisons to a diverse list of bands such as Red House Painters, Gravity and Henry, and early Azure Ray.
Band Members
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