I'm happy to have the date for our next concert, as well, Stella Kola, whose music I admire very much, will perform January 17th at 7pm in our accessible, upstairs performance space.
Hailing from the misty grottos and orchards of Western Massachusetts, Stella Kola weave haunting ballads that dig deep into the psychedelic-folk tradition while shapeshifting into captivating new forms. Initially a duo formed in 2019 as a songwriting project between poet/vocalist Beverly Ketch and musician Robert Thomas (founding member of the long running improvisational group Sunburned Hand of the Man), the project steadily swelled to a sextet. The lineup now consists of Ketch on vocals, Thomas on acoustic guitar, Wednesday Knudsen on flute & sax, Jen Gelineau on viola, Jeremy Pisani on guitar & synth and Jim Bliss on bass.
Cosmic Ray will be opening for Stella Kola. Cosmic Ray is a solo project of Shannon Ketch, also of Sunburned Hand of the Man and Animal Piss, It's Everywhere (APIE). Influenced by John Cage's chance operation he creates an electro-acoustic landscape incorporating synthesizer and field samples.
Critical Acclaim for Stella Kola’s debut album:
"Stella Kola’s songs wash over the listener with a beautiful woe. It’s hard to see an album, especially a debut, capturing the heart as hard as this one. This is an essential record." -Raven Sings The Blues
"Pitched somewhere between Vashti Bunyan’s breathy, quavering delicacy and Judee Sill’s conversational but melancholy clarity, Ketch’s soft sighs weave among aching strings and chiming guitars, and her gentle ruminations on the sparse space shanty “Rosa” haunt my dreams."-Chicago Reader
"Rosa" is a delicate thing, a mythical story-song that is tenderly brought to life with acoustic guitars, woodwinds and strings delivered through the musicians' casual proficiency. The masterful restraint of "Rosa" and the rest of Stella Kola's shimmering debut evokes Anne Briggs, Pentangle and similar ancestors that knew the best way to honor traditions was to widen the heritage even further."- NPR