Published on Feb 23, 2004
“From the home office in Indianapolis, Indiana, today’s Daily
Vault Top Ten List: The Top Ten Reasons You Should Go Buy Garrison
Starr’s New CD
Airstreams & Satellites.”
“10. Garrison Starr rocks, plain and simple. Performing in
coffeehouses and small clubs while still in high school, she
rapidly developed a unique style. Part rock, part folk, part
country, she has some serious guitar-playing and songwriting
ability , and is one of the most talented artists it’s been my
privilege to stumble upon in a few months.
“9. If they ever do a live-action movie of Emma Bull’s cult
urban fantasy novel
War For The Oaks, she’s perfect for the role of Eddi, the
main character. Even looks like her.
“8.
Airstreams should be in the dictionary next to “‘versatile.”
Starr sings wistful upbeat love songs (“Wonderful”) and biting
verbal commentary (“Runner-Up”) with equal ability.
“7. The production is dynamite. A definite headphone CD, I hear
new things on it every time I take a listen.
“6. She uses the phrase ‘all my peeps in Nashville’ in the liner
notes. How cool is that?
“5. Her band is talented as heck. Special kudos go to Bruce
Watson for a couple of deftly inserted — and wonderful — mandolin
parts, Curt Schneider’s impeccable bass playing, and Matt Lang’s
drumming (which neatly runs the gamut of a number of musical
styles).
“4. The lyrics. Oh, yeah, those lyrics; Starr’s a poet who
happens to put her poetry to music — for example: “She’s on a roll
/ She’s the perfect picture of complete control / But underneath
her stage / she’s scared to death you might mean what you
say…”
“3. You would be supporting an artist with something real to say
in an era of EmptyVee spectacle and nonsense. I just can’t imagine
Garrison Starr appearing in a halftime show with Justin
Timberlake.
“2. Two words: “One-Sided.” This track, a straight-ahead
gonads-to-the-architecture rocker, is one of the best songs I’ve
heard — nay, THE best song I’ve heard — this year. I stuck it on
repeat play for an hour at a time, and never once got tired of it.
It’s worth the twelve bucks by itself, and then you get all these
other cool songs.
And the Number One Reason You Should Go Buy Garrison Starr’s New
CD
Airstreams & Satellites:
“1. Anyone who both Steve Earle and Mary Chapin Carpenter like
has to be cool.”