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After years of building a solid, devoted following with her deeply affecting and personal songs, performing and touring frequently on her own and with a band, Angie Stevens was ready to hang up her guitar. "I needed a break," declares Angie Stevens. "I was done. I was cooked. I was done with Angie Stevens and the Beautiful Wreck. I was done being a lead singer. I was done with the bureaucracy of the music industry. I was done." But then she reconnected with Haley Rydell, a talented singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Fargo, whom she'd met through mutual friends in North Dakota, and everything changed.
See also:
- Tonight: I'm With Her at Soiled Dove, 11/2/12
- The ten best concerts this weekend: Nov. 2-4
- Best of Denver 2006: Best Singer-Songwriter
- Stand Up Girl: Angie Stevens has finally put the past behind her
The rigors of the music biz had clearly taken a toll on Stevens, a lauded songwriter who'd established a strong and devoted fan base by playing countless local gigs and touring frequently. The demands of leading a band left no room to be artistic, she says, and right around that time, she reconnected with Rydell. The pair began collaborating, and the effect of their chemistry was profound -- both on their music and on each other.
Rydell, who started playing music by ear at age three, helped reignite Stevens's creativity, and I'm With Her (as their new act would eventually be dubbed, after Stevens misunderstood Rydell's suggested moniker, She's With Me) gave them both a chance to step outside their normal boundaries. Until she began playing with Stevens, Rydell was best known as the fiddle player in the Johnson Family Band.
"I was in a group of smelly boys," she says. "We just drank a lot of whiskey and traveled a lot in a van. It was great. I loved it, but I didn't get the satisfaction of being creative. It would be, 'Here, play this fiddle line.' If I threw in an extra note, that was as creative as I got to get. In the end, I wasn't able to express myself with any lyrics or anything."
And Stevens, who was coming out of a troubled relationship, had plenty of things to get off her chest. "I was like, 'I don't care if we make the first EP, if we even do a second one, or if we send it to everyone and they hate it,'" Stevens recalls. "There are no cooks in our kitchen. It's going to be us, and I need to be sad. Honestly, that's what I said to Haley -- 'I need to be sad.' If I can't be sad in my own band, I don't want to do it anymore."
Rarely has sadness sounded so good. I'm With Her's new full-length -- the fan-financed The Songs We Said Goodbye To, whose release is being celebrated tonight at the Soiled Dove Underground -- is absolutely gorgeous and finds Stevens at her absolute best. While she has always been an extraordinary songwriter, the songs on Goodbye, particularly within the framework of Rydell's exceptional added instrumentation, represent Stevens's finest work to date. And with the seamless way their voices blend in harmony, it's as though these two were always meant to be together. I'm With Her is absolutely gorgeous, like Patty Griffin sitting in with the Weepies. - Denver Westword
Discography
i'm with her-
i'm with her EP, 2011
Songs We Said Goodbye To, 2012
Angie Stevens-
I'm Okay
Stand Up Girl
Queen of This Mess
Haley E Rydell-
Haley E Rydell EP, 2007
Before We Go (Haley E & the Rydells), 2010
Photos
Bio
I'm With Her is the brainchild of two Midwestern-born artists, Angie Stevens and Haley E Rydell. Both have been performing with multiple projects over the past twelve years, but have found a rare gem in their new partnership. Neither knew just what to expect when they first decided to collaborate in March of 2011- especially considering Haley lived in North Dakota and Angie was already a well-established musician in Colorado.
“I had always wanted to work with Angie, but I had no idea what to expect,” Haley says “which in retrospect, I think was a good thing, because it left a totally blank canvas for us to work with.” Angie echoes, “I wasn’t sure what to expect. I have always been intrigued by Haley’s writing style and musical abilities.”
So Haley hopped a plane to Denver and the band “I’m With Her” was born.
“I was surprised because it came together so easily. It felt natural and perfect,” says Haley. This should come as no surprise as both musicians bring a wealth of writing, recording and performing experience to the table. Angie has released a live DVD and five CDs throughout her solo career and with her band “The Beautiful Wreck.” Haley has two recordings with “Haley E. & the Rydells” and another two with “the Johnson Family Band”. During the initial stage of I'm With Her, Angie and Haley worked up favorites from their individual catalogs, pulled in a few select covers and quickly began developing new songs. Haley notes, “A lot of the music we worked on was new material, which was really fun, because even we didn't know exactly what we wanted to do with it yet. Over time, parts came together and it all made sense.”
Both have a tremendous respect for the other and appreciate the uniqueness they bring. Angie says of Haley, “She has a musical interpretation I only dream of having. She can hear parts that I can’t. She pushes me to be better musically.” While Haley says of her counterpart, “Angie brings a different vocal approach to our music. She's taught me a ton about songwriting. It's not just verses and choruses. It's building, it's dynamics, it's telling a story- and all the emotions that go along with that story.”
Since Haley's relocation to Denver in November of 2011, the two have been busy writing, recording and performing all over the Midwest. I'm With Her just released their second EP 'songs we said goodbye to' which was completely fan-financed through the fundraising website, Kickstarter.com. Their first self-titled EP was released in June of 2011.
“I'm With Her is absolutely gorgeous, like Patty Griffin sitting in with the Weepies.”- Dave Herrera, Westword Magazine
More about Angie - Melding the influences of alt-country, indie-rock, contemporary folk and pop, Angie Stevens has settled comfortably into the shoes of an Americana artist with soul-bearing, live performances that have captured audiences all over the map. Stevens has gained national attention over the last few years following the releases of her first three albums. Her song, "Sleepwalking," was featured on HBO's "Big Love" and her video for "Stand Up Girl" was a pick of the week on CMT's "Top 20 Video Countdown." Most recently, Eddie Bauer selected “Give It on Back” to accompany in-store video in First Ascent locations.
More about Haley - Born and raised in the flatlands of Fargo, Haley began playing the violin at the age of three and picked up her first guitar at thirteen. She taught herself to play and dreamed of someday playing in a band. She spent many years as a member of The Johnson Family Band as well as her own band Haley E. & the Rydells and now as an official Colorado resident is focusing on I'm With Her.
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