KEREN ANN'S U.S. Premiere "Not Going Anywhere"

Jun 1, 2004

After recording two successful CDs in France and co-writing the bulk of legendary French singer Henri Salvador's 2000 hit album Room with a View, the singer-songwriter Keren Ann makes her auspicious U.S. premiere with Not Going Anywhere on Metro Blue Records (an imprint of Blue Note Records). The CD is a sumptuous acoustic pop album of 11 finely crafted, lyrical gems. It marks Keren Ann's debut singing a full package of songs in English.

With a whispery, delicate-almost fragile-voice that is as soothing, cool and refreshing as ice water on a humid summer day, Keren Ann delivers indelible songs that range from sober to sprightly. The poetry of the lyrics is strong throughout, and thematically there are equal measures of sweetness, wistfulness and intrigue. The album features a stark instrumental backdrop (a well-arranged sprinkling of strings and winds) that complements her unadorned, folk-leaning acoustic guitar and keyboard performances. Instead of the electronica colors and textures of her earlier outings, Keren Ann sticks to the basics here. As her French biographer Frédéric Lorge puts it, her sound is "stripped down, but not fleshless, since her voice has now got what it takes to conquer space."

Keren Ann's first two CDs, 2000's La Biographie de Luka Philipsen and 2002's La Disparition (The Disappearance), were collections of originals sung in French. The ethereal Not Going Anywhere finds her exploring the themes of love and disappearance in English. "I like to write songs in both languages," she says, "Actually, I didn't plan to release this album. It was just something I had to do for myself, to document the songs. But once I recorded it, I asked my label in France for a budget to finish it up."

Released in France in November 2003 on EMI France's Capitol Records, Not Going Anywhere quickly became a hit. "It was nicely welcomed," says Keren Ann, whose full name is Keren Ann Zeidel.

The eleven songs on Not Going Anywhere add up to a moving and mysterious listening experience that introduces an important new talent.

While Keren Ann is based in France and spends considerable time in Brussels and Iceland, she will be making her presence known in the U.S. when she sets up a summer residency in New York City at The Sidewalk Café.

KEREN ANN
Not Going Anywhere
Metro Blue 71211
August 24, 2004

Clck here to learn more about Keren Ann and to listen to her music.