Music
Press
The following are the Top Five most often listened-to recordings in the FolkWax office this November
1. Various Artists - Great Lost Elektra Singles Volume 1 (Collectors' Choice Music)
2. The Gibson Brothers - Red Letter Day (Sugar Hill) Release: January 24th
3. Darcie Miner - The Fragile E.P. (Indminer Records)
4. Antsy McClain - Time-Sweetened Lies (Trinity Music Productions)
5. Rick Shea & the Losin' End - Bound for Trouble (Tres Pescadores
- Folkwax Magazine (Dec 29, 2005)
- Folkwax
DARCIE MINER – THE FRAGILE E.P. (Indminer Records) At the age of 22, Hershey-based singer, songwriter and guitarist Darcie Miner has already experienced a rollercoaster ride in the music business. She was signed to a major record label, Beyond/Universal, which folded before she ever completed her first full album. She has toured with Edwin McCain and has opened for names such as Patty Griffin, Richard Thompson, Jeffrey Gaines, Heart, Darius Rucker and more. She appeared on the MTV program Advance Warning in 2003, and came up short on CBS’s Star Search in that same year. Darcie is still making music; and based on the four studio and three live tracks of her latest recording, The Fragile E.P., she is still exploring, both musically and lyrically. Right off the bat, we hear Darcie exploring on the disc-opening “Fly;” she starts the song with a gentle, Patsy Cline country-like croon, but the tune grows harder and stormier as doubt and jealousy intensify. Also in a country-driven vein is “Anything Anyone Anymore,” an upbeat song of self-realization and lessons learned. “A Lot to Lose” offers a punchier, rocking sound; while “William” is a more somber-toned acceptance of a break-up. The three live tracks, “The Beast,” “Momma” and the contemplation of Heaven “One Big Line to the Top of the Sky,” offer Darcie at her most basic and bare bones; with acoustic guitar, soaring voice and emotional presence. Darcie uses her voice to paint a wide range of ever-changing emotions throughout these songs, ranging between high-soaring intensity and delicate quiescence to shape the moods and textures of each song. On the studio tracks, Darcie’s musical hired guns color the background surrounding her voice, enhancing her impact with a full, lush backdrop. The live tracks, though, illustrate that she is fully capable of painting pictures on her own, as she crafts moods and emotions using her vocal power, frailty and grit. The Fragile E.P. shows us that after weathering ups and downs in her music career thus far, Darcie Miner remains true to her art and passion, and is an artist unafraid to stretch out and explore, both musically and emotionally. The disc gives a wider scope of what this artist is all about, and offers the most revealing view of her musical personality yet. (The CD can be obtained at her shows, or by visiting www.indminer.com or www.myspace.com/darcieminer.)
jptheprofessor - Q94 wbxq-fm (Jun 2, 2006)
- Q94 WBXQ
This month, Home Stage featured the very introspective and passionate, Darcie Miner! The audience was treated to bittersweet confessional life stories, a great sense of humor and a very open and moving performance that will be remembered for being one of the most honest performances we have had in our small space. Darcie's EP, "The Fragile EP" is the latest of four CDs with a new one in the works. Melancholy and uplifting, "The Fragile EP" is strong and ethereal with honest and poetic songwriting. She is the best of what we love about Patty Griffin in lyric and style, and her live performance is just if not more moving and wonderful than her CD.
- One Room Productions
http://www.nodepression.com/profiles/blogs/album-review-darcie-miner
Darcie Miner
Loneliness Anonymous
(Indminer Records: US Oct 2009)
Darcie Miner’s first full length CD, Loneliness Anonymous, is an extremely powerful mix of songs that are chock-full of blunt honesty and tragic truth. It is one of the most compelling records to come out in recent memory, and hopefully will establish the 26 year-old singer/songwriter as an up and coming—and important—artist in the Americana/Triple A scene. This record reads like a ten chapter memoir that chronicles the struggle, hope and passion of a young woman who is finally coming to terms with herself, her art, and where she may fit in this world. Been done before? Sure. But what sets this record apart from so many others is that every single song on this one is good, and several of them are actually great.
Though, an extremely personal record on many levels, each song has that ever important quality needed in the singer-songwriter genre—accessibility. Lyrical imagery woven into an Americana backdrop highlight songs dealing with: bad love, lying boyfriends, drugs, crime, personal demons, and the tragic death of a loved one. There is something on this record that everyone will relate to in their own lives. It contains ten very well crafted and performed songs, co-produced and recorded by multi-instrumentalist, Jimmy Patton. They range from the Fleetwood Mac-ish leadoff song, “Vulnerability,” to the country twang in three-quarter time in "Loneliness Anonymous", (the compelling title track), to the rootsie, hard hitting, autobiographical song“24,” mixed up with the moody melodic rock on “Rollerskating Song,” and “Patience, Boy.” There’s even a touch of Glimmer Twin grit thrown in for good measure with the rocking “Bad Habits and You’re Full of Shit”.
Darcie also delves into a complicated relationship with a loved one in the stunning “Somerset,” (my personal favorite track which contains one of my all time favorite lines, Money never moved fast enough for you...), to the tragic death of another loved one in the heart-stopping, “Trainwreck in Pennsylvania.” If you listen closely you will hear her grasping for each breath as she sings a highly compressed, yet very poignant, and emotionally draining vocal. This song is an instant classic that is on the level of Neil Young’s “The Needle and the Damage Done” in emotional content. And speaking of Neil, fans of his will love the guitar work on “Wide Awake in Silence,” another highly personal song with a very angry edge in the middle of the record. The album ends with a beautiful, Kathleen Edwards kinda vibe on “There Is No Getting Through,” which then culminates with three minutes of locusts, crickets and muffled children’s laughter.
WXPN in Philadelphia has taken a bold move by adding her record to their playlist this past week. Hopefully, other stations in the Americana and Triple A formats will follow suit, and I couldn’t think of a more deserving record for a grass-roots type of campaign. Personally, the last time I was moved enough to write a review of a new record was on the original AOL “No Depression” message board, and that record was Whiskeytown’s Strangers Almanac. Everything about Loneliness Anonymous is done with a meaningful purpose—and I highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates the fine art of a great album!
- Steve Yanek
Listen here:
www.cdbaby.com/cd/darcieminer3/from/ftb
www.darcieminer.net - NoDepression.com
http://adserver1.harvestadsdepot.com/harisbrgpat/ss/075854/049/049.shtml?049_001/049_001.shtml# - Harrisburg Review
Discography
Down to Earth
The Darcie Miner Band
The Fragile EP
Dm
Loneliness Anonymous (10/27/09)
Photos
Bio
Darcie Miner probably started singing as soon as she could talk. Thanks to her dad, she gained a very early knowledge and appreciation of the history of rock and roll while being exposed to a diverse range of musical styles – classic rock, R&B and even metal. Darcie started playing guitar at age 11 and made her first rather inauspicious debut performance at 13. In her own words, "I was so bad then." It didn't take long to develop an emerging talent, however.
Under the direction of The Badlees' Brett Alexander, Darcie made her recording debut. Although it may not exactly have been the record SHE wanted to make, it still made a very strong impression. Conventional wisdom followed that “in order to get a record deal you need a band.” At age 16, she had formed her band and a deal with Beyond Music/Universal Distribution soon followed.
Darcie began to live the life of the touring musician, traveling up and down the East Coast in a mini-bus before she even had her own drivers license. The band opened for Beyond Music label mates The Go-Go’s and Heart, performing in venues packed to the thousands. They immediately began working on a record. Like many other artists, Darcie soon discovered that the elusive record deal is a somewhat mixed blessing. Halfway through the recording process, something just didn’t seem right. Label money stopped coming in and eventually everything was put on hold. Darcie left Beyond Music, and the label folded soon after. Left with only 6 songs fully recorded, she decided to continue moving forward independently. "The truth is, every label I showcased for after that passed. 'We don’t hear any hits' was the word." Not surprisingly, this was hardly a permanent setback.
With a wide network of loyal support, including a push from Philadelphia radio station WXPN, Darcie released the 6 songs as a self-titled EP in the summer of 2002 and toured as support for Edwin McCain. She made various TV appearances, played shows at colleges and renowned venues like the 9:30 Club, CBGBs and House of Blues, while sharing the stage with Patty Griffin, Richard Thompson, Graham Parker, Drive By-Truckers, Wyclef, Beth Hart, Citizen Cope, Rodney Crowell and more. WXPN named her an Artist to Watch. Along with her band, she performed on the competition show “Next Big Star” on the PAX Network. She also performed solo on CBS’ Star Search in 2003 – just her and her guitar singing The Box Tops' "The Letter. " She was also the first unsigned act to perform live on MTV – a show called “Advance Warning” –where she performed a song co-written with famed producer Matthew Wilder (Kelly Clarkson, No Doubt, Christina Aguliera).
In 2004 she began recording The Fragile EP with producer Steve Ward, which was released in 2005. Just a few months after the release, she was hit with a tragic personal setback. "I just disappeared for a while, basically. My family has always been a major inspiration for songwriting, but sadly in a very depressing way. After that happened I didn’t write a song for a year. Actually it took a whole year to write 'Trainwreck In Pennsylvania' because it made me so sad."
Through a fortuitous chain of events, Darcie teamed up with mulit-instrumentalist and producer Jimmy Patton and the two formed a powerful musical bond. In mid-summer 2007 they began recording in Patton's home studio. "It's really the best way to make a record... with someone you’re friends with, who likes the same music you do. I have never had so much fun making music." With the release of Loneliness Anonymous, Darcie has finally found her true voice and she's done so with a vengeance. Loneliness Anonymous has the rootsy, guitar-driven edge and bittersweet lyrical pathos of artists like Kathleen Edwards and Tift Merritt. But unlike many standard indie singer/songwiter records, Loneliness Anonymous is also balanced with the hooks and pop sensibilities of Sheryl Crow and even contains some nods back to classic 70's pop bands like Big Star. Darcie has officially shed her status as a girl with a guitar whose young age belies a mature talent. She's simply a huge talent. Period.
Listen to the single "Loneliness Anonymous" on the Audio page.
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