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Contact: Amanda Rundquist - 715-495-5102 – Amanda@amandarundquist.com
Local Artist Releases Debut CD
Amandas CD “Long Long Week” Inspires you to Dream Big!
Maiden Rock, WI, November 7, 2009— The two year anniversary party at Old Man River Pizza Pub was also the kick off to a long (long) tour for Amanda Rundquist where she performed and released her album of acoustic music with various edges.
On November 7th, Amanda Rundquist packed the pub once again with her acoustic guitar and piano. Her powerful, yet soothing voice and deep, insightful lyrics attack the pains of everyday life. “Long Long Week is about that day job you settled for, that relationship that’s not quite right, that dream you’ve had that always seems to get put on the back burner yet still runs through your veins. It’s about finding real love and never loosing faith in ones self” says the singer and songwriter.
Although the CD is now released, the tour will not begin until the early months of 2010. Touring with fellow musician Cole Thomas, she plans to do shows in several cities throughout the Midwest as well as Florida and Colorado. You can visit www.amandarundquist.com to hear music, order the album, view tour dates, and much more.
- Willow Sweet Music
In this world of pre-packaged sterility, it is refreshing to encounter a truly authentic voice. On her debut album, “Long Long Week”, Amanda Rundquist sings of the nitty gritty reality of life. In the title track you face Monday morning and the job for a paycheck, with your head busting with a hangover from karaoke. These aren't words some marketing guy dreamed up to appeal to a demographic or lifestyle group. No. Amanda is singing words wrung from her own personal experience, her life of trying to get by, grasping for happiness on weekends, and somehow keep the dream alive that you are more that just your job at the factory that is getting ready to close its doors forever.
Amanda's music resonates with that voice deep inside us that whispers, "I'm okay. Life is touch, it is hell. But I am me and I can survive. I am worth more than any job or car or house. My life matters. I will be OK.” No matter what society says.
- Lynette Yetter www.musicandes.com
"Amanda's lyrics have such a deep human appeal. Each one tells a story the listener can relate to in a personal way. That's the magic of gifted songwriters. They reach in, and pull something out of [the listener] rather than trying to force something in." - Douglas Yoder www.grokradio.com
Discography
Long Long Week
1. Long Long Week
2. Silver Plate of Fear
3. Your Prisoner
4. Far Away
5. My Home
6. Lonely Love Song
7. My Way
8. This Time
9. Dreams
10. Wrap Me Up
11. Love Lies
12. Genuine
13. Nashville Tenessee
Photos
Bio
Amanda Rundquist, rising star of the indie/folk genre, grew up in a rural community in southeast Minnesota. Ever since she was old enough to sing, she dreamt of being a music artist. She began piano lessons at age five and was soon singing and playing at churches and nursing homes with her mother. Early on, she discovered her natural ability to sit down and play a song soon after hearing it, a skill she shares with both her mother and grandfather. By age 12 she had written her first single "Lonely Love Song" which appears on her debut CD "Long Long Week". "Amanda's lyrics have such a deep human appeal. Each one tells a story the listener can relate to in a personal way," says engineer and producer Douglas Yoder of Studio 7220. "That's the magic of gifted songwriters. They reach in, and pull something out of [the listener] rather than trying to force something in."
Amanda describes Long Long Week as a long, long overdue project. "Man, I had enough material by the time I was 27 to record almost three albums," she says, with a sheepish grin. "The hardest thing was picking what would go on the album." Though none of the tracks stray from her folk roots, they still manage to cover a broad range of style. "Genuine" stands out as a warm love ballad that would be at home in a wedding ceremony, while "Far Away" is an edgy, punk-leaning rocker with a slight Caribbean rhythmic bed. At the same time, "Dreams" is an ethereal and orchestral expression of longing. Still, none of these works lacks the earthy, driving acoustic strum that is Amanda's trademark.
A life-long pianist, Amanda also plays piano and synth on much of the album. Her work on "This Time" and "Your Prisoner" stands as an example of the keyboard talent she inherited from her mother, who so greatly influenced her musical upbringing. Guitarist and instructor Carl Stephenson also plays a large roll in Long Long Week as well. "Carl laid down all the guitar parts that I just didn't have the skills to put together," says Amanda, who only recently started playing guitar. "It's kind of a drag when you write things you're not ready to play, but I suppose we all do it from time to time," she says with a laugh. Then she adds, more seriously, "in the studio, Carl really got where I was going with the composition and added some guitar lines that blew us all away. Those little decorations really made the CD something special."
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