Assigning genre to an artist is a dead notion. The first notes of Michaela Anne‘s new single off her forthcoming album ‘Desert Dove’ proves that. I’ve long considered her “a country singer”. Often sporting a hardy pair of cowgirl boots and the occasional hat, she plays the part brilliantly, but its artists like her that are bridging gaps, slaughtering preconceived notions of who they are as artists and where they fit by doing something slightly new so well…its artists like her that are changing the landscape of how we experience and enjoy artists and music today. That we are not dimensional and the ability to blend and weave your varying depths and influence is something to embrace.
She commands one of the most graceful voices in the umbrella of Americana today. Tone and control with the gentlest hint of twang. Here on “By Our Design” it shimmers and glows golden across the backdrop of singing strings and throbbing rhythm. The broad wings of the swooping violin arrangements enveloped by steady percussion and a flowing bass that vibes when you bite into it. The singer-songwriter’s voice pierces your heart with its gentle lilting nature, but penetrating deep to the bone nontheless. It’s beautiful but brawny. Beauty in this case can not be mistaken for anything delicate, because the pure strength and power that Michaela Anne conveys with her voice can bowl you own with one swift choral line delivery. Crushingly gorgeous.
“Desert Dove” is out on Yep Roc on September 27th…and we can’t wait.