Cat Power
It’s been a 4-year wait for original Material from Cat Power; with the new release of You Are Free, that wait is over: Chan (pronounced “Shawn”) Marshall is Cat Power, a rare breed of singer-songwriter treading ground chartered by Nick Drake, Beth Orton or Patti Smith.
But Cat Power’s sound is uniquely her own, with raw, heartbreaking vocals against lo-fi guitars that are dark yet somehow bright. This contrast brings an odd quality that is her signature. And even with repeated listenings, Chan’s plain-spoken lyrics continue to baffle and inspire.
In the song “He War,” as if to reprimand rock media selling sex over prowess, she proclaims, “I’m not that hot new chick / and if you want me to run with it / we’re onto your same old trick.” The girl’s got chops and tells us so, pitting a slow chugging bassline against chear piano tinklings and more layers of guitar.
Other songs have not only atmosphere but a location too. “Good Woman” sounds like a long lost Appalachian folk recording with a chilling and creaky fiddle. What takes it out of history is the electric guitar and a goosebump-inducing that sounds like ten Chans at ten stages of life.
The album You Are Free shows maturity and perhaps an urge for philanthropy. Her craft is not so much to unleash sadness as it is a call to think and feel, perhaps the way she does. As if to recognize her growing fan base, in the song “Free” the acoustic strings abruptly squeak through chord changes as she rallies, “Everybody come together / Free / Everybody get together / Free” as if to make us all feel good.
Prior to this, Cat Power’s aptly-named The Covers Record came out in 2000, and paid tribute to trousered rock stars Mick Jagger, Bob Dylan and Lou Reed. But like the name, Cat Power’s sound is distinctly female – with Marshall’s aching vocals dominating the beautiful mess of rock guitars.
I fondly remember hearing Cat Power on a mix tape while riding with friends in a teeny car. When the song came on, we all just stopped talking and although it wasn’t, it felt like it was raining outside. Like the kind of grey rain where the sun comes stabbing through. Haunting and glum, but always with hope.- Rosemary Pepper
Band Update:
In 2006, Chan became the first woman to win the Shortlist Music Prize for The Greatest, her highest charting album to date. Resuming her talent for re-orchestrating songs from musical greats, Chan Marshal released her second covers album in January 2008, entitled Jukebox, featuring songs from Bob Dylan, James Brown, and many more. -Anne Ostrowski
