Edmonton vocalist turns soul on its head, belting out delicate introspection in the form of fire" -â Now Magazine, June, 2004

13 MP3 Songs
POP: with Live-band Production, URBAN/R&B: R&B Pop Crossover



Details:
"Soul Unravelling" is the debut CD from Ann Vriend. A prolific writer and tremendous music fan, Ann has been putting words to music since her childhood days spent noodling on the piano in her parents' basement. She suffers from an affliction shared by many active songwriters; Ann tires easily of anything she has created that is not the most recent. "The Weather", "The Only Living Girl in New York", and the local hit, "Waterfront" will likely be popular requests for the rest of her life. Ann, however, would much prefer to play for you her latest creation. When her latest creation is different every week it is curious to know how many gems have yet to see the light of day.

Meticulous and thought provoking, infectious and imaginative, Ann Vriend is serious about the craft of writing pop music. She approaches it with the flair of an artist and the love of a fan. Aretha Franklin, Paul Simon, Leonard Cohen are a few of the major influences on this songwriter whose work seems much older than she.

Here is a test for you all. Play an Ann Vriend song for some friends. Note how often a new listener will start to sing along before the song is over. There is a timelessness to Ann's music that creates a familiarity. In a short time it seems as though you have known these songs for years.

Some remarkable mile stones have already been marked for an artist with such a fresh career: performances at prestigious venues such as the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, New York City's Bitter End, Fez and Arlene Grocery, demos recorded at Sony NY, command performances for major labels, and a first place winner of a songwriting contest, which took Ann to Nashville.

To carry on in the business will be of little concern to Ann Vriend. What is often referred to as "the difficult second album" is probably already written and will likely be rewritten a time or two before its day. No need to speak of the next disc though, you still have this one to enjoy.