The following article was submitted by Jane Jones:
Cityscapes – Katie Costello (Free Download)
There has been a wave of female vocalists in the past 5 years or so; all touting the thick acrobatic yet coy affectation, all worshiping at the altar of Regina Spektor and Ingrid Michaelson but laying it on thicker than Billie Holliday herself. Ultimately, they annoy the shit out of me. Let me be clear that Katie Costello does not fall into this category one bit.
Costello has taken some of that old jazz trill and turned the old jazzy jazz influence into a voice entirely her own. Her vocals have a charm and strength as clear as a bell, while her music has a poppy swagger that sometimes recalls the work of Aimee Mann and Michael Penn. Costello plays piano with a band of 4 skilled musicians who seamlessly juggle bass, lap steel, keys, and of course the glockenspiel.
At the Rockwood Stage 2 this past Tuesday night, I had the pleasure of checking out her full band set, just a week before the release of her debut EP. Her song writing is strong and clever with huge heart. Nothing here is contrived, but rather charming and sincere. Starting the set with a Tom Petty groove of a song, and warping lyrics that could easily come off as trite into poignant and weighted statements about the difficulty of life and love in New York City.
Not all the songs were up-beat piano-popsters. Her song “Lost and Far From Home” stood out as one of the first ballads with a swooning and emotional effect on the audience as they followed her dynamic swoops from a tiny and whispered urgency to large, bright, belted-out declarations.
Her songs are not the only allure in a Katie Costello live set. Her between-song banter was endearing as well. We were all happy to listen to her compliment her band’s dress vest and fedora style, or pontificate over what to do on her ‘New York-iversary’. She stated, “I’ll probably buy a pastry and cry or something.”
Closing the night out she told us all, “there is so much music in life and in tonight, so you should stay in both.” Her range, her writing and her arrangements are all incredibly impressive and delightfully entrancing. We’ll definitely be seeing miss Costello go far with her talents.
