Enjae
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Enjae

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"Addictive music for those who have had it missing in their lives"

The description of this CD went like this:

Gritty sometimes lo-fi, down-tempo music with sexy smokey female vocals that leaves the listener mesmerized. Gritty yes, but this is far from lo-fi, although I think the intention was to suggest that they will get you into a mode similar to what Portishead's music does to your skull. There's nothing lo-fi on this self-titled CD from Enjae, which is the vehicle for vocalist Natalie Barry. One can easily hear the Portishead influence, but there's also a bit of Supreme Beings Of Leisure in the way Barry's voice goes from powerful and strong to delicate and ethereal, mixed in with beats from the vaults of the good cratedigger and real instrumentation from a wide range of musicians (including JK Northrup, Kimber Hone, and Flamp Sorvari.

You do hear "sexy smokey vocals" but don't expect luxurious tales from a chanteuse. Instead you hear tales of being lost, going nowhere, and questioning the allure of being sinister. In "Slow Burn", where Barry's voice sounds very similar to Alice Temple's performance in UNKLE's "Bloodstain", you almost feel as if you are right next to her hearing sing word for word, which at times comes off as one-part diary, one-part confessional. It's intimate in the sense that you feel you get a sense of what she's singing about, and when the urge to resist comes in the mind, you realize that you can't. It's seductive and eerie at the same time, and when you hear a countermelody that may offer a hint of optimism, Barry is slowly crawling up your spine as the spider that pops up in one of her songs. She will slowly crawl into your consciousness if you let her, and once the spider is in, good luck in going cold turkey.

(Enjae is available through CDBaby.) - Music For America by John Book


"New CDs Take Music in All Directions"

ENJAE
A multi-year labor of love by Natalie Barry, this self-titled album is a great blend of modern and old school hip hop sounds. There is terrific low-end bump in the music tracks, plus each song features some nifty layering of tones and musical ideas for what can only be called sonic flavoring. Barry says that part of her goal was “keeping it minimal with a taste of ear candy” and she certainly succeeded. Plus, her vocals are lovely throughout. And although she is singing, not talking, most often her tracks have a feeling of an intimate poetry recital. As for the lyrics, well, they are personal to the point of making listeners feel like voyeurs. The effect is a bit like looking into the psyche of a contemporary female artist who has decided to reveal part of her soul. A true DIY triumph, you can visit www.myspace.com/enjae for more information. - Music Industry Newswire by Scott The G-Man


"Enjae's 'Who Am I' as Sunday Single"

Enjae's gets reviewed in one of Northern California's largest newspapers the Sacramento Bee.

Music critic Chris Macias features "Who Am I" as the Sunday Single and writes "it’s a dreamy bit of trip-hop in the vein of Portishead and Morcheeba. Dig on those fluid bass lines and Enjae’s torchy vocals." - Sacramento Bee


"Enjae"

Scott The G-Man!!!

Music Industry News

ENJAE A multi-year labor of love by Natalie Barry, this self-titled album is a great blend of modern and old school hip hop sounds. There is terrific low-end bump in the music tracks, plus each song features some nifty layering of tones and musical ideas for what can only be called sonic flavoring. Barry says that part of her goal was “keeping it minimal with a taste of ear candy” and she certainly succeeded. Plus, her vocals are lovely throughout. And although she is singing, not talking, most often her tracks have a feeling of an intimate poetry recital. As for the lyrics, well, they are personal to the point of making listeners feel like voyeurs. The effect is a bit like looking into the psyche of a contemporary female artist who has decided to reveal part of her soul. A true DIY triumph, you can visit www.myspace.com/enjae for more information. - Music Industry News


"Enjae"

Bluesbunny writes: "The highlight of this album is, for this Bluesbunny anyway, "Nice Fit", starting with some rather camp impersonations of Ursula Andress and Sean Connery (aka King Sean the First of Scotland) from the movie Dr No. Still, it saves on the copyright fee of using the real sample. A driving bass line underpins a hypnotic two chord tune sprinkled with more 007 impersonations and shows a chink of humour in the otherwise urban jungle feel of this album. A break of sixties' go-go sounding guitar lightens the feel of this track. Another stand-out track is "Slow Burn". With its smoky jazz club vibe, this is a deeply sensual wee number. Breathy vocal lines have sinuous saxophone phrases weaved around them, perfect music as background to what a Bluesbunny enjoys most - after carrots, of course!" - Bluesbunny


Discography

'Metropolis' and 'Who Am' I are both currently on rotation at several internet and college radio stations.

ENJAE Debut Self Titled CD Receives Critical Acclaim!!

CD BABY Chart Positions
AS OF 8/01/07

#1 Electronic Down-Tempo
#2 Electronic Down-Tempo/Editors Pick
#1 Solo Female Artist/ Electronic
#2 Solo Female Artist /Hip-Hop Rap
#1 Solo Female Artist /California
#1 Solo Female Artist /California/Electronic
#1 Solo Female Artist /California/Hip-Hop/Rap
#2 “Sounds Like” Portishead/Editors Pick
#1 “Sounds Like” Madonna/Editors Pick
#1 “Sounds Like” Sade/Editors Pick
#1 Sex Music/Editors Pick

Reviews:

Reviewer: Chris Macias, Sacramento Bee

Features "Who Am I" as the Sunday Single and writes "it’s a dreamy bit of trip-hop in the vein of Portishead and Morcheeba. Dig on those fluid bass lines and Enjae’s torchy vocals."

Reviewer: John Book, Music For America

"Addictive music for those who have had it missing in their lives!"

"The description of this CD went like this: Gritty sometimes lo-fi, down-tempo music with sexy smokey female vocals that leaves the listener mesmerized. Gritty yes, but this is far from lo-fi, although I think the intention was to suggest that they will get you into a mode similar to what Portishead's music does to your skull. There's nothing lo-fi on this self-titled CD from Enjae, which is the vehicle for vocalist Natalie Barry. One can easily hear the Portishead influence, but there's also a bit of Supreme Beings Of Leisure in the way Barry's voice goes from powerful and strong to delicate and ethereal, mixed in with beats from the vaults of the good cratedigger and real instrumentation from a wide range of musicians (including JK Northrup, Kimber Hone, and Flamp Sorvari. You do hear "sexy smokey vocals" but don't expect luxurious tales from a chanteuse. Instead you hear tales of being lost, going nowhere, and questioning the allure of being sinister. In "Slow Burn", where Barry's voice sounds very similar to Alice Temple's performance in UNKLE's "Bloodstain", you almost feel as if you are right next to her hearing sing word for word, which at times comes off as one-part diary, one-part confessional. It's intimate in the sense that you feel you get a sense of what she's singing about, and when the urge to resist comes in the mind, you realize that you can't. It's seductive and eerie at the same time, and when you hear a countermelody that may offer a hint of optimism, Barry is slowly crawling up your spine as the spider that pops up in one of her songs. She will slowly crawl into your consciousness if you let her, and once the spider is in, good luck in going cold turkey."

Reviewer: Scott The G-Man!!! Music Industry News

ENJAE A multi-year labor of love by Natalie Barry, this self-titled album is a great blend of modern and old school hip hop sounds. There is terrific low-end bump in the music tracks, plus each song features some nifty layering of tones and musical ideas for what can only be called sonic flavoring. Barry says that part of her goal was “keeping it minimal with a taste of ear candy” and she certainly succeeded. Plus, her vocals are lovely throughout. And although she is singing, not talking, most often her tracks have a feeling of an intimate poetry recital. As for the lyrics, well, they are personal to the point of making listeners feel like voyeurs. The effect is a bit like looking into the psyche of a contemporary female artist who has decided to reveal part of her soul. A true DIY triumph, you can visit www.myspace.com/enjae for more information.

Reviewer: Bluesbunny

Bluesbunny writes: "The highlight of this album is, for this Bluesbunny anyway, "Nice Fit", starting with some rather camp impersonations of Ursula Andress and Sean Connery (aka King Sean the First of Scotland) from the movie Dr No. Still, it saves on the copyright fee of using the real sample. A driving bass line underpins a hypnotic two chord tune sprinkled with more 007 impersonations and shows a chink of humour in the otherwise urban jungle feel of this album. A break of sixties' go-go sounding guitar lightens the feel of this track. Another stand-out track is "Slow Burn". With its smoky jazz club vibe, this is a deeply sensual wee number. Breathy vocal lines have sinuous saxophone phrases weaved around them, perfect music as background to what a Bluesbunny enjoys most - after carrots, of course!"

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Bio

Down and dirty, gritty and smoky, yet ethereal, the sometimes-angelic Enjae gets under your skin like only a crafty torch vocalist can. This ultra-groovy 'lounge-hop' with tasty sonic flavoring and a terrific low-end bump can take you from jazz to hip-hop influenced vibes then back to a 60's era spy movie themed groove to delicate contemporary ballad. Some have categorized Enjae as 'trip-hop at it’s finest', yet others have referred to it as a style that is ‘all her own’. We prefer to let you decide.

In a digital dependent world, Natalie Barry aka Enjae chose an unconventional route and stuck to 'golden era' production styles to develop her debut self-titled ‘Enjae’ CD. It becomes apparent early on to the listener that this CD is a collection of music with no ‘filler’ songs. The songs paint an individual story, each with depth and meaning all their own. While each song manages to have an almost completely different sound from the last, together they take you on what one critic refers to as ‘a voyeuristic journey through a woman’s pleasures and frustrations’. Natalie manages to paint this story with rich dramatic colors while still maintaining true to her minimalistic ideals.

Natalie Barry began Enjae in 1999 when she auditioned over forty musicians in search of the 'perfect sound'. She discovered the classic soulful, gritty, raw flavor she was looking for in 'beat maker' Elonzo Parker. Over the next twelve months the two of them worked together in a tired, defunct camper trailer in Shingle Springs, CA to write and record tracks for the Enjae project.

Enjae and Elonzo produced the music entirely with an Ensoniq EPS 16+ or an Akai X-7000, an Alesis ADAT, a mini-disc recorder, Roland HS-101 or in laymen's terms - samplers. They used actual non-virtual instruments, an ancient 16 channel mixer covered in coke/beer and various other fluids, several hundred albums, and ONE turn-table and a microphone. (Ain't no party like an old school party. Word.) The result is down-tempo music that makes you hip-silly, combined with contradictory smooth but raspy captivating female vocal.

They originally made some of the music available for download on MP3.com in early 2000. At that time Enjae's 'Who Am I' jumped to MP3.com's TOP 10 in the trip-hop category.

But like any good story there is a little drama!! In 2002 Enjae and Elonzo lost contact with each other along with the Enjae ADATs. Enjae was left only with a CD of a few of the songs they had worked together on. Enjae sought out ways to recreate the music they had written but was unable to recapture the magic they had as a collaborating team.

In April of 2006 Enjae received a late night phone call from Elonzo stating he was back in the area and had located the Enjae ADATs. Enjae quickly reunited with him and digitally downloaded the tracks and began the process of completing the now seven-year-old Enjae project.

From sampling in a dilapidated trailer in the Sierra Nevada to the professional mixing and mastering skills of Jeff Northrup, the Enjae project is now come full circle. This project has seen many changes during the last seven years but what has remained constant was the vision that Natalie held true to. To create a full length CD of music with no 'filler' songs. Her vision was to have a CD with each song telling a story all it's own, with each song having an individual sound yet having enough cohesiveness between the songs to be on the same album. All that can be said for her vision is - she definitely succeeded!