...Trail of Crumbs Music

Jami Lunde - Big Black Birds

I had the pleasure of randomly being asked to put a bill together for a prominent venue in town for a Saturday night show, after the confirmed acts had to cancel.   With less than 2 weeks to go til showtime, I scrambled to find artists willing and available with such short notice.  I sent out texts and emails to about 10 friends, some of whom referred me to some of their friends, who referred me to some of their friends.   With that said, unfortunately I can’t take credit for ‘discovering’ one of my new favorite female singers, Miss Jami Lunde, who was referred from a friend of a friend, telling me she should be passing through town that weekend.   What a great find and I’m so thankful she was!   Jami’s vocals remind me of Mindy Smith, but with a little more ‘umph’ behind them - and I LOVE Mindy Smith, so that’s a big compliment from me!  Not too many singers are comfortable showing genuine vulnerability or singing simple, single notes instead of implementing excessive runs, vibratos, and vocal gymnastics that are now mandatory for anyone to take singers seriously, thanks to shows like American Idol. These ladies voices are so pure, and the emotion evoked from the lyrics really shine through - and isn’t that the whole point of music - to convey emotion?  

I love this description of her latest album, “Big Black Birds”:

“Inspired by Edgar Allen Poe’s The Raven, Big Black Birds is about the conversations between Jami and the black birds that followed her all over Colorado, California, Thailand, and Indonesia while she was writing this album. The album is built from her experience as an alt- country troubadour, weaving tales of travel, self-realization and death.”

Jami was such a breath of fresh air, I was really needing to have a close encounter with a humble, hard-working and inspiring artist, because as much as I try not to, it’s easy to have moments of jadedness and overall frustrations with this whole music industry thing!   She’s a readers’ writer, finding inspiration all around her, yet she’s true to herself and her own voice.  Jami is also a hustler, in the best sense of the word - playing wherever she can, honing her craft, feeding that bounty of restless creativity and curiosity, and creating her own opportunities.   She even started her own music festival and music production company!  She’s the kind of artist that is just happy to be playing, seems the most comfortable in her own skin with a guitar in hand.  Willing to play alone to an empty room or a crowded room not paying attention with just an acoustic guitar, or to one of the many big music festivals or showcases with a full backing band.   But she Does deserve your full attention and has already caught the ear of some acclaimed musicians (Chris Funk of The Decemberists, for example, contributed on this record).  This record is the perfect driving companion - with the windows down, taking the backroads - that’s where you feel the true spirit of this record.  My favorite tracks so far (I’m sure that’s bound to change the deeper I dive in the record) are “My Tupelo” - which was the stand out track in her live show, I thought.  It’s the most upbeat song on the record, and is the last track, which leaves you so happy & fulfilled, yet wanting to start right back over at Track 1 because you just don’t want it to stop.  Her vocals on “My Tupelo” live blew me away and she’s not afraid to bang up her beautiful Gibson guitar on this one!!  You can preview the track here at iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/my-tupelo/id446959165?i=446959274

My second favorite track is the slow moving ballad, “Time Will Tell”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEqj0_Zgg7g

Overall, the showcase was a success.  We finished the night with Saints of Havana and another deserving up&coming country act, The Tony Logue Band.  We ended up coming out ahead with a little bit of extra cash, had a decent crowd for a last minute show on a Saturday night with a dozen other events going on around town that day, the room sounded amazing, I got to get my name out there a little more & build on a good relationship with that venue, and I got to be inspired by one of the artists I put on the bill… That’s what this is really all about & those moments are what makes it alllll worth it.