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ORMOLU My sister was talking for some reason about ormolu, late one night in our living room (ormolu’s the fake gold you see on ornate mirrors and frames she told me when I said “huh?â€). I loved saying the word and thought it sounded like a name. I got up out of bed later that night and wrote the song “Ormolu,†thinking about substitutions we make for things we want but can’t have, and the tragedy that can arise from trying to fulfill a frustrated desire with a proxy living thing. Actually, not really thinking anything that cogent at all at the time... Ormolu the album came together surprisingly naturally as I was trying to think of a nice little project to do with my friend Jeff Saltzman. The song Ormolu was the glue, though, for these disparate stories about (ultimately) unwanted people and the creeping resentment and poison that can come when someone’s not what we want them to be. Thanks for listening. xoRachel p.s...I also play w/ a little pop juggernaut called The Sort Ofs (see gigs below), and in the Fear of Heights orchestra. See thesortofs.com or chrisrobley.com for more. ****************************************************************************** ABOUT ORMOLU: "If singer-songwriter Rachel Taylor Brown's third release, "Ormolu," needed to be summed up in a single word, it would have to be "melancholic." But "pensive" could work well, too, as would "brooding," or to keep it simple, "sad." And "beautiful" would be apt as well.....And that's the difficult artistic trick Brown has pulled off with "Ormolu." She's managed to construct a quick listen that feels almost epic, an album that demands to be encountered and examined again and again." Scott D. Lewis, The Oregonian ****************************************************************************** "Its not surprising that Rachel Taylor Brown sings with a couple of local classical groups when shes not performing as a solo artist or playing in her friends bands. Her voice sounds pure and gorgeous; her songwriting and sparse, piano-based arrangements are classic. Ormolu...a collection of hauntingly beautiful, heartbreaking songs illuminate what happens when love turns into something poisonous and people turn into something other than what we wanted." Barbara Mitchell, The Portland Tribune ****************************************************************************** "Brown never loses the humanity of each of the characters she creates, in the same way that Breugel could record our follies while also expressing the love he felt for our silly species. As with her past releases, Brown exercises her considerable range as a vocalist, reminding us of her classical work and her ability to put that to use to create dark expressionist tonal worlds like the ones found on Ormolu. Think Randy Newman meets Stravinsky." Dave Mazza, The Portland Alliance ****************************************************************************** “ ...uncompromising in her writing, willing to imbue her songs with the artful attack of dissonance, storm and stress, and lyrics that will rip your heart out. Part madwoman in the attic, part pop-diva, Rachel is a crazy talent.†Chris Robley (The Sort Ofs, Fear of Heights), Cutthroat Pop Records ****************************************************************************** "Unlike anything else...incredible...a completely unique visionary." Jim Brunberg, Mississippi Studios ****************************************************************************** ABOUT JONAH DAYS: "Brown's songs have been described as catchy alt-pop, but they're darker and subtler than that. Many of them have a twist that catches you by surprise... Dawning awareness that things aren't what they seem..." David Stabler, The Portland Oregonian "... she has created an album of gravity and substance, haunting in its charm - memorable in the grandeur of its effortless simplicity. [Jonah Days] is to music what John Sayles' "The Secret of Roan Inish" is to film: an enduring folk tale, rich with timeless images. Inspired and original." S.P. Clarke, Two Louies Magazine ***************************************************************************** GIGS, SPRING/SUMMER/FALL 2006 (see CD BABY "Do Not Stare" RTB page for complete shows history) Saturday, June 24, 8pm MISSISSIPPI STUDIOS [backing up Holcombe Waller] tix at mississippistudios.com Wednesday, July 19, 7-9pm THE LITTLE RED SHED, EDGEFIELD solo Saturday, July 22, 9pm IMBIBE RTB Band Chairman (of DRATS!!!)/The Chair Project $5 Thursday, July 27 (w/ The Sort Ofs), 9pm HOLOCENE w/ Simpl and DRATS!!! Wednesday, August 9 (w/ The Sort Ofs), 5pm PCPA/The Schnitz Courtyard outdoor concert Wednesday, August 9, 8pm The White Eagle The Cocktail Hour (hosted by Barbara Mitchell) Short sets from pdx musicians (including me) and hosted by music critic/writer Barbara Mitchell (Portland Tribune, The Stranger). Also, Lael Alderman, Colin Spring, Matthew Lee Patrick and Pentecost Hotel. free Thursday, August 31, 9pm [The DOUG FIR w/ Holcombe Waller] Backing up friend Holcombe again. :) Sunday, September 3, 8pm ALBERTA STREET PUB Bastards in the Round Justin Carroll, Chris Robley, Tre, RTB Monday, September 11, 10pm [PICA/TBA Festival w/ Holcombe Waller] Details to come. Friday, October 27 THE ALADDIN Murder Ballad Tenth Anniversary full band, Killer Queen! Friday, November 3, 9:30pm MISSISSIPPI STUDIOS RTB and the lovely SOPHE LUX. Saturday, November 18, 9pm Kate Mann's CD Release at Proper Eats (St. Johns) Delighted to join Kate and John Vecchiarelli for this lovely night. Dates TBA in November: Jeff Buckley Tribute Night, The FEZ One Hit Wonders and Guilty Pleasures (w/ Nicole Campbell, Pilar French, Little Sue and Lara Michell), IMBIBE ****************************************************************************** Musée des Beaux Arts by W.H. Auden About suffering they were never wrong, The Old Masters: how well they understood Its human position; how it takes place While someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along; How, when the aged are reverently, passionately waiting For the miraculous birth, there always must be Children who did not specially want it to happen, skating On a pond at the edge of the wood: They never forgot That even the dreadful martyrdom must run its course Anyhow in a corner, some untidy spot Where the dogs go on with their doggy life and the torturer’s horse Scratches its innocent behind on a tree. In Brueghel’s Icarus, for instance: how everything turns away Quite leisurely from the disaster; the ploughman may Have heard the splash, the forsaken cry, But for him it was not an important failure; the sun shone As it had to on the white legs disappearing into the green Water; and the expensive delicate ship that must have seen Something amazing, a boy falling out of the sky, Had somewhere to get to and sailed calmly on. ****************************************************************************** Check out the artist's website: http://racheltaylorbrown.com Track List: 1. Start 2. Linda 3. Sitka/Seward's Folly 4. Ormolu 5. Upright Man 6. Favor 7. Ins. R. Burr 8. End Other Genres:
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