Gretel in  Folk , Folk Rock

Location

Boston, MA

Label

Eyeteeth Records

Gretel On the Web

Official Site

While doubt and anxiety are common 21st century preoccupations, Gretel’s songs evince an honesty and directness usually reserved for confessionals and bathroom stalls. Lyrics of disappointment, denial, love and faith shimmer with precision and intensity, while the melodic and tonal explorations of their music unabashedly suggest that something better might be possible.

The sound is eclectic--the live show finds the band juggling a multitude of instruments, from saw to typewriter, accordion to 5-gallon bucket. Whether through the existential pinch of a digital pulse, the ecstatic heights of an operatic line or the muddy optimism of a gospel choir, Gretel’s palette is broad. Each song sits within its own well-deserved world, refreshingly interpreted and never underexposed.

This New England-based group, led by songwriter and mouthpiece Reva Williams, met in September 2003, and just finished up their second record on Eyeteeth Records. Playing in and around a town near you, Gretel offers the strange comfort of unexpected and useless beauty.

Reva Williams: vox, guitar, hand percussion
Phil DuPertuis: bass, guitar, bgvs
Melissa Myers: keys, bgvs, hand percussion