Seeker
BDM, 2021
8/10
The veteran singer-songwriter Brigitte DeMeyer, who has called Nashville home for many years (which is a fitting city for her unique brand of Americana), Seeker hosts a long list of players including Jano Rix (piano, organ, drums shuitar, vocals), Alfreda McCrary (harmony/backing vocals) and Viktor Krauss (upright bass, electric bass), among many others, to flesh out the songs that were inspired by an abrupt move back west.
“All The Blues” starts the listen with upright bass, pedal steel and shuitar as Demeyer’s inviting and expressive singing brings us on a warm Americana adventure, and “Cat Man Do” follows with playful piano, plucked electric bass and harmony vocals from Freda McCrary that add much to the eclectic, soulful landscape.
In the middle, “Calamity Gone” places no shortage of melody and powerful singing into the key driven atmosphere of the bluesy protest song, while “Already In” finds a bare place to reside as acoustic guitar and mellotron gently accompany Demeyer’s strong pipes on the love song for her husband. “Ain’t No Master”, a late album highlight, then recruits both jazz and soul ideas in a memorable and groove friendly display of timeless skill.
Near the end, “Seeker” lands closer to folk music, where upright bass and gentle guitars help build a very spiritual affair, and “Roots And Wings And Bones” exits the listen with a song about children, where blues and gospel sounds are well done and greatly appreciated.
DeMeyer’s got an impressive catalog that goes all the way back to the beginning of the century, and this chapter of her work is some of the best yet, where her California roots are certainly intact, as she points towards the influence of the Music City, as well as deeper south, with much accomplished and thoughtful diversity.
Travels well with: Lynne Hanson- Just Words; Amy LaVere- Painting Blue