Sin Silver and the Avenue

CONCORD — She may be Sinéad O’Connor’s namesake, but Sin — short for “Sinéad” Silver — said that besides the fact that they’re both musicians from Ireland, they’re unique in their own way.

While Silver listened to O’Connor’s music when she was a 9-year-old in County Clare, Ireland, she was inspired to carve out her own path in the music industry.

“The number nine has been particularly magical for me, it speaks to me,” said Silver. “I was 9 when I listened to Sinéad O’Connor, and I specifically wanted to have nine songs on the CD. From her, I learned how to find my own voice and stay true to myself — to speak your truth.”

Like the serendipitous nature of the number nine, for Silver, all of life’s been a fantastic journey. First, the journey to the U.S. when she was 21 and her subsequent return in 2010 to the Bay Area she now calls home. Then there was her journey to launching her musical career.

“I studied law in Ireland,” said Silver, who lives in Concord. “If I had stayed in Ireland, I would’ve been a lawyer.”

But her heart was set on being a musician. Even with a concert pianist mother, the fact that Silver “started playing piano as soon as I could walk,” and started writing songs when she was 12, she didn’t perform until she moved here six years ago.

“I got my start at Petar’s in Lafayette Tuesday nights playing piano and singing a little bit of everything — from the ’70s to pop hits,” she said. “A couple of years later, I decided to work on my own music and form my own band.”

Since forming Sin Silver and the Avenue, band members have come and gone, but today, she’s joined by Justin Vanegas on bass and Jason Bolich on drums. The last name Silver and the band’s name she took from the Silver Avenue exit she saw on the way to San Francisco International Airport.

The cover of the band’s debut album features a map of the Comstock Mine in Nevada, which Silver chose it for its historic significance and connection to her stage name, as well as the ore mined in the area.


“It was the biggest silver mine in America at the time and sparked a ‘silver rush’,” she said. “In fact, many in San Francisco made fortunes on it. However, there were many that came to make their fortune that never found anything. Much like myself, looking for the American dream, the reality can be a little different. It could also be used as a metaphor as digging beneath the surface of the music.”

Titled “Motherload,” the album features nine songs that aren’t necessarily drawn from her own experiences, but rather inspired by what she’s observed from others since immigrating here.

Silver, whose artistic influences also include Elton John, David Bowie, Jack White and Joni Mitchell, said she approaches each song she writes with empathy and compassion.

“As an artist, you can put yourself in other people’s shoes,” she said. “It’s an interesting way to keep the inspiration going.”

In fact, the “Motherload” title can take on various meanings.

“It has to do with the things we bring with us from our childhood,” she said. “Our experience doesn’t always have to be positive; sometimes the negative stays with us and it can be quite a load. So much work has gone into recording this CD. It kind of feels like my motherload.”

The CD, described as “piano-driven rock with an Irish heart,” has truly been a community-supported effort. She grateful for those who believed in her music, including Jeffrey Wood, studio director of Fantasy Studios, a recording company in Berkeley “who took us under his wing,” and to all those who donated funds and followed her career since her days at Petar’s.

“I’ve always had the support of the local community,” she said. “It’s been amazing.”

“Rarely does one hear an artist create music with such visceral power,” said Wood. “Sin’s voice and piano weave a masterful angst and redemption, forged from personal involvement. Her images come from a place of deep dreams and calling. Her music demands listening.”

Since she immigrated in 2010, Silver said she’s truly been living the American Dream. From her two-year stint at Petar’s, she’s performed at Armando’s in Martinez, Vinnie’s in downtown Concord, and the Rellik Tavern in Benicia, as well as routinely performing at Graton Resort and Casino in Rohnert Park.

“Get out there and check out live music in our community,” she said.

Silver hopes to perform in Los Angeles and Las Vegas and even in her native Ireland someday. She said she has no regrets for choosing music over a law career.

“If you do what you love, it fills you up,” she said.

WHO: Sin Silver and the Avenue

WHEN: 7-9 p.m. Sept. 23

WHERE: Roxx on Main, 627 Main St., Martinez

INFORMATION: www.sinsilverandtheavenue.com - East Bay Times

Sin Silver came to San Francisco from County Clare in Ireland six years ago with a dream, an enormous talent, and what many would call a fire in the belly to be heard. Since then, she has made a large swath of fans in Contra Costa County, where she finds herself these days, one song at a time, one fan at a time.

The Concord resident is glad to be here, loves the diversity and the food of the city, and the way hillside mansions sit not far from more modest homes.

From these and other inspirations around her, Silver gets her songs. She plays in bars and other venues as a solo artist, in which she performs a number of selections of other people's music. But whenever she can, Silver throws in one of her songs, and these days it is common for people to call out for them by name. That is the food by which a songwriter’s soul is fed.

“I’ve played music since I was four,” Silver said. “My mother is a concert pianist and music teacher. But I never performed in Ireland. I didn’t do that until I got to the states.”

And how does she find America?

“There are parts of America I adore,” she said, “the diversity, the feeling that anything can be around the corner. Ireland can be predictable. America is not. And the people are very kind. On the other hand, the divisions are very scary. And the poverty. You don’t want to be poor in the U.S.”

Her influences include Sinead O’Connor, Jack White, Elton John, Neil Young, Tori Amos and Joni Mitchell. She also loves Chopin, and is an avid reader of poetry, especially William Butler Yeats.

“I love Billy,” she said.

Her three-piece band is called Sin Silver and the Avenue.

“The band is my attempt to bring my original music to the fore,” she said. “After six years of playing bars, doing cover material, I’m trying to get my originals out there.”

Her songs are often about people who have been forgotten, people in the shadows.

Silver performs Friday evening at Armando’s in Martinez. She often plays at Auburn James Winery in Danville. Her band will appear at the Fireside Lounge and High Street Station, both in Alameda.

"I want to tour the world,” she said, “and play on Saturday Night Live, and have people listen and feel it. Because we’re all looking to be understood in our own way.” - Patch

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Published:
Sinead Healy is bringing the sounds of the Emerald Isle to East Bay piano bars. The 27-year-old singer/songwriter was raised in southwest Ireland and recently moved to Concord. Healy is composing a CD of original songs—when she’s not
covering those of Elton John and Norah Jones during happy hour at Petar’s in Lafayette and Vic Stewart’s in Walnut Creek.

What brought you to the East Bay from Ireland?
I got engaged to an American whom I met while traveling here in 2000. We were just friends, but he came to visit me back in Ireland, and we fell in love. I wrote a song, “Jagged,” about coming back to America for him.

What is the largest tip you’ve received?
One hundred dollars, on three occasions. Once a fellow got up and put some money in the tip jar, and I noticed it was $20. Then he came back over and took it out. I thought he made a mistake and meant to leave a dollar. When I counted my tips, I found the hundred in there.

What’s St. Patrick’s Day like in Ireland?
It’s a national holiday, with a parade, but it’s not about going to a sports bar or chasing leprechauns. It’s a family night, where you eat dinner then sit about in the living room singing together. My family is always playing the Celtic harp, piano, violin, flute, and guitar, and singing.

To hear songs and see show dates, go to www.sineadhealy.com - Diablo Magazine

A unique blend of piano driven rock with an Irish heart....that's how we describe ourselves.
"A voice with beautiful, heartfelt lyrics coming from the depths of soul… chills with each song… an artist that must be heard live for the full effect ." Djlesrocks, Mangaging Editor at Bay Area Rocks and Artist Management at Djlesrocks Talent
djlesrocks@gmail.com - Bay Area Rocks