Nellie McKay has a Sense of Humor on Fresh Air
Posted by Scotter
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I recently listened to Nellie McKay’s November 21 interview with Terri Gross on Fresh Air and was awestruck by her talent, humor, and charm. I’ve listened to this interview more than I’ve listened to many new albums this year.
McKay is a bit flighty, which adds to her charm, and spunky, which adds to her strength. Her style is imbued with musical theater, a form that makes most rockists shudder from relapses of when their moms made them go see Cats or The Phantom of the Opera, but she delivers her lines with all of the ironic charge of a Stephin Merritt (who, by the way, is also a big fan of music theater classics). But McKay’s irony is stronger, less “woe is me” and more “woe is you.” Her performance is often pleasant, completely catchy, and very ballsy. And I can best describe her voice as Karen Allen with Bing Crosby-esque inflections. She is becoming popular among Indie music fans in spite of her musical style because she is what Indie music fans appreciate most: she is a nonconformist.
The interview made me go out and buy two of her albums. You know what? I don’t really dig them. They’re too much. Over-orchestrated. Too many players. All of the music drowns her natural charm and weirdness, as if she’s hiding behind it.
And perhaps it’s because she really is timid. A friend of mine saw her at SXSW. After the show, he walked up to her and said “Hi Nellie” and she took off running–literally running–in the other direction.
Check out the interview. The last song is fantastic!
–Posted by Scotter
Marginal Minds wrote:
Nellie McKay is definitely a breath of fresh air in the world of solo female singers–and correct, best when stripped down (and I don’t mean that in the innapropriate sense). There are some great youtubes of her worth checking out (one was just her at a piano for one of the late-night shows).
Posted on 14-Dec-07 at 11:20 am | Permalink