Kristin Shout and Smoking Kitten
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Kristin Shout and Smoking Kitten

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The best kept secret in music

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"The List: This week's Critic's Choices and other good bets in Music"

KRISTIN SHOUT & SMOKING KITTEN Kristin Shout's a longtime Chicago fixture--she used to book bands at Czar Bar and was part of the team that won the 1991 National Poetry Slam--but she earned her musical chops busking around Europe, picking up the life experiences that give her jazzy country-hybrid songs their cinematic resonance. Her swooping, husky, mutable voice inhabits a creepy world of tornadoes, drugs, criminals, and ambivalent love, and Shout sings like she's been there a long time, familiar with all its dark alleys and hiding places. This show is a release party for the self-released Thorny Devil, her first full-length album with her band, Smoking Kitten. Thomas Pace and the Great Crusades open. 9 PM, Martyrs', 3855 N. Lincoln, 773-404-9494 or 800-594-8499, $8. --Monica Kendrick

- The Chicago Reader - 1/6/06


"Chicago singer/songwriter makes music to Shout about"


What she calls an accident appears to be the early evolutionary stages of an artist that combines the elements of her life with darkly sweet results.
Kristin Shout said that she fell into music almost by accident as a result of incorporating music into her performance art/poetry explorations.
“I always sang in choir,” she said. “But when I introduced some of my singing into my performance art pieces, people started encourage me to add more - to sing more.”
Through stark originality and adherence to musical integrity, Shout’s music has grown to be yet another facet in the jewel called Chicago’s music scene. Her music is best described (if at all) as a haunting blend of aggressive folk music with cabaret-style vocals and eclectic instrumentation.
Shout experienced much of her musical growth on the streets of Europe - in particular, Paris, France.
“I needed to make a living in Paris and was able to do so with singing,” she said. “The problem was that I was constantly chasing players around that would be able to accompany me.”
It was on the streets of Paris that she decided that rather than chase the players around to work with her, she would learn the instrument and accompany herself.
Six months after picking up the guitar, she began doing solo gigs on the street and in the clubs.
“My singing voice compensated for my lousy playing,” she said of those first few months. “I would play anything. In Paris it was classic rock. They were more into a Delta blues/rockabilly in Nice.”
She also began to work her original music in. While this writing and performing her own music was much more rewarding than playing cover tunes, she knew that the work - and the income - was dependent on her ability to play covers.
She was also considered a bit of a novelty because there were not a lot of women “buskers” (or street performers) at that time.
“There is a huge market overseas for cover musicians,” she said. “I loved France, but kind of got sick of playing ‘Proud Mary’ and ‘Let it Be.”’
Eventually she got got fed up with playing covers and began to burn out due to the lack of creative challenge. This is a constant in the arc of Shout’s career. This motivation to challenge herself creatively and artistically keeps her one step ahead of anyone who might be considered a colleague.
This challenge could also be a problem, because her pioneering spirit makes her hard to categorize, which scares the marketing people at the major label.
“The closest thing they can call it is ‘Female Indie Music,’ but that falls into the cracks, too,” she said.
She doesn’t care whether she gets categorized or not. She just wants people to be open enough and have the opportunity to listen to her music.
“I just try to write what I hear in my head. Each song is a separate animal,” she said. “I just want to follow through on each song - one song at a time.”
In addition to challenging herself creatively, Shout takes full advantage of the learning opportunities that she is afforded. She can do this while keeping focused on her music.
“I am still learning when I go into the recording studio,” she said. “There are just so many things that take time away from practicing my guitar and writing songs.”
An ideal day for Shout would be “to wake up and start playing guitar.”
Kristin Shout will perform at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 16, at the Abbey Pub, 3420 W. Grace St., Chicago. For more information, call 773-478-4408.
Kristin Shout will perform at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 10, at the Uncommon Ground, 1214 W. Grace St., Chicago. For more information, call 773-929-3680. - Chicago Arts and Entertainment By Paul Barile


"Shout sings her way into song showcase"


Kristin Shout became a singer out of necessity. After doing performance art and poetry slams in Chicago in the early 1990s, she decided to spendsome time in Europe. She didn’t have an easy time finding work in Paris. “The only way I could make a living was by singing,” said Shout, who will perform Friday at a songwriters showcase at Borders in Oak Park. And so Shout became a busker, singing songs on the streets of Paris. At first, she sang with a guitarist she had encountered one day on the square in front of Centre Pompidou. They played covers of classic rock songs and did well enough to attract a decent amount of cash from passers-by. Then Shout began writing her own songs and teaching herself to play guitar, traveling to other parts of Europe. “I wanted to be independent,” she said. As a beginning guitarist, she knew only five songs, but she moved to Antwerp, Belgium, and kept playing those same five songs, over and over. This was when Shout became a singer-songwriter, but she doesn’t look back on that time with any nostalgia. “It was a dark period in my life ... Some of my songs are about junkies and criminals,” she said. Shout isn’t shy about discussing her troubled past, including drug and alcohol abuse; she says she has conquered those problems. After returning to Chicago, Shout has found a happier existence and lightened up the mood in some of her lyrics, she said. “I got clean a couple of years ago, and that’s made a big difference in my subject matter,” she said. That’s not to say Shout’s latest compositions are Pollyanish pop music. Her music often has a dark tinge, as she draws on influences ranging from the cabaret tunes of Kurt Weill to the folk rock of Neil Young and the alternately brazen and moody vocals of PJ Harvey. During Saturday’s performance, Shout will play with Jeff Kust, who plays guitar, mandolin and banjo in her backup band, Smoking Kitten. The full band also includes Doug Brush on percussion and Greg Nergaard on bass. Shout said she was invited to perform at the showcase after submitting one of her songs, the standout track “Avalanche,” in the USA Songwriting Competition. Kristin Shout, Jaime Jess, Bruce T. Holmes will perform in an acoustic songwriters showcase sponsored by the USA Songwriting Competition at 8 p.m. Friday at Borders Books and Music, 1144 Lake St., Oak Park. - Pioneer Press BY ROBERT LOERZEL


"KRISTIN SHOUT TO OPEN FOR TIM EASTON NEXT MONTH"


Kristin Shout will be opening for New West Records’ Recording Artist, Tim Easton in Chicago next month.

Friday, June 6th at 10pm Shout and her band, Smoking Kitten will open the show for the acclaimed Los Angeles’ based singer/songwriter at the Abbey Pub, located at 3420 W. Grace in Chicago. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door. Tickets are available at www.ticketweb.com.

Easton’s recent release, “Break Your Mother’s Heart” has already garnered a high praise from an array of reviewers, including a four star review in Rolling Stone. The Philadelphia Inquirer stated, "The disarmingly direct lyrics match the simple beauty of the music."

Also known for her ‘direct’ lyrical style is Kristin Shout. She is sure to complement the evening’s roster and will be accompanied by her band, Smoking Kitten. Her band includes the stellar talent of Jeff Kust- Guitar/Banjo/Mandolin (Chicago Symphony Orchestra), Doug Brush - Percussion (Las Toallitas, Guitars of Spain, Rose Polenzani) and Greg Nergaard - Bass (Fetal Position and World Gone Mad).

The vocals of Kristin Shout have often been compared to Patti Smith and PJ Harvey and her songs have been compared to no one. Shout makes ‘no bones’ about her dark past in her songs. She began her music career by busking the streets of Europe in 1994. She fell into a dark life for moreover three years in Belgium, while engaged to a criminal. “Songs like “Mobster in Costume” and “All Your Money” are entirely based on a true story”, said Shout. She continued, “I was living the life of ‘Pulp Fiction’ over there. Although that part of my history is not something that I’m proud of, my songwriting allows me to exercise my demons and work through it, hence the darker lyrical themes.”

Prior to her busking adventures, Kristin was a member of the ensemble that won the 1991 National Poetry Slam and was a recipient of a fellowship award from the Illinois Arts Council in the field of interdisciplinary/performance art. Shout booked the likes of Liz Phair and Veruca Salt as a booking agent at the Czar Bar in the early nineties in Chicago. She returned to Chicago at the beginning of 1999 . She released her self-titled debut EP, recorded at Kingsize Sound Labs just two years ago and has completed a new “4-song” disc, recorded at Dam Recording in March. Its single, “Avalanche” has already garnered a songwriting award from the International Song Lounge Competition. Shout was also invited to showcase at the USA Songwriting Competition’s Chicago Showcase in May.

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- Chicago Arts and Entertainment


"various"

Paul Barile of Chicago Arts and Entertainment said, "Kristin Shout's debut EP is a breath of smoky nightclub air with enough wit and invention to demand further research on this artist." Carter Moss of the Illinois Entertainer said, "She's been compared to everyone from Eartha Kitt to Ani DiFranco to Fiona Apple, and after hearing her passionate vocals it's easy to see why....This debut EP allows Shout to showcase her strong and diverse vocals, and leaves a reason to look forward to her first full-length release." - various


Discography

2000 - Kristin Shout -debut EP
2003- Kristin Shout and Smoking Kitten -follow up EP
2006 - Thorny Devil

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

The music of Kristin Shout draws from influences ranging from the cabaret tunes of Edith Piaf to the country of Johnny Cash and the "alternately brazen and moody vocals of PJ Harvey". Although her voice has been compared to performers ranging from Karen Carpenter to Lucinda Williams to EmmyLou Harris, her vocal color and songwriting style is uniquely her own. Paul Barile of Chicago Arts and Entertainment confirmed, "Her combination of fearlessness and talent result in sexy, dark songs that are as ageless as they are intelligent."
Kristin's formative years were spent in North Carolina and Nebraska, but her music career started on the streets of Paris in 1994. Over the next five years, she traveled and played in such diverse European countries as: Belgium, Holland, Germany, Spain, the Czech Republic, Switzerland and, of course, France. Her music is a mish-mash of all of her influences: Indie yet Americana with a European flavor -- A little bit cowboy, a little bit cabaret.
Prior to her journeys overseas, Kristin received a fellowship award from the Illinois Arts Council in the field of performance art, which enabled her to stage her well-received one women show "Screaming to be Free from the Icon Tree." Her history in poetry and performance is evident in her theatrical lyric style. Monica Kendrick from the Chicago Reader explained, "Kristin Shout's a longtime Chicago fixture --she used to book bands at Czar Bar and was part of the team that won the 1991 National Poetry Slam-- but she earned her musical chops busking around Europe, picking up the life experiences that give her jazzy country-hybrid songs their cinematic resonance. Her swooping, husky, mutable voice inhabits a creepy world of tornadoes, drugs, criminals, and ambivalent love, and Shout sings like she's been there a long time, familiar with all its dark alleys and hiding places."

Shout can be seen performing with her band, Smoking Kitten, which was voted the best new band in Chicago in New City’s "Best of Chicago" 2002 Reader's Choice poll. They have played at some of Chicago's most acclaimed original music clubs, such as The House of Blues, The Abbey Pub, Schuba's, Double Door and Martyrs'. She has shared billings with Grammy nominated vocalist, Abra Moore, Golden Globe nominated songwriter, Dave Baerwald (Tuesday Night Music Club), Soul Asylum, Nash Kato, Jay Bennett (Wilco), Scott Lucas (Local H), Fastball, The Spin Doctors, Josh Joplin, Kelly Hogan, Tim Easton, Leon Russell, The Alarm, Kasim Sultan (from Utopia) and Amy Rigby.

According to Barile from Chicago Arts and Entertainment, "Through stark originality and adherence to musical integrity, Shout's music has grown to be yet another facet in the jewel called Chicago's music scene". Backing Kristin Shout is Smoking Kitten: Doug Brush (vibraphone and assorted percussion), Brian Wilke (Pedal Steel), Greg Nergaard (bass), Melissa Ziemer (backup vocals) and John Knecht (drums). Smoking Kitten plays on Shout's follow-up EP and her new full-length debut, "Thorny Devil", released in January, 2006. They paint her cleverly crafted lyrics with rich instrumentals that are cinematic on the open westward roads or on the couch after dusk.