Erin Harkes - Episode 154 [Encore Episode]

Recorded 02 Oct 2012: Erin Harkes is an original singer/guitar/piano player from upstate New York.Erin began writing songs at the age of 19 and has since released four albums of original material. The first album, Bar Napkins and Magic Markers was recorded at St. Andrews college in North Carolina. The CD features nine tracks and was a learning experience for Erin, as she recorded the album entirely by herself. Her second CD was recorded live at the Elbow Room in NYC on September 21, 2001 and contains four songs. The following year, she recorded her first studio project with her band, The Rebound, entitled Rough and an 11-track live CD in 2005 called Special I Am which featured nine original songs. Erin currently resides in Albany, NY. In addition to her own band, she performed with another local band, Folding Sky, for the 2004 Colossal Contender Blues Competition at the Empire State Plaza in Albany. Out of three finalists, they received 60% of the votes to earn a position in the international finals in Memphis, TN in 2005. Don Wilcock of the Troy Record had this to say of Erins performance: standing firmly on two feet, this dirty blonde banshee belted out her music with no vibrato, no soft feminine wiles, just a blast-furnace breath of fire that singed the hair of everyone in the last aisle at the top of the museum steps watching her performance. Though blues has been known as her forte, her original material bounces from one genre to the next for an alternative/folk/rock mix. She has opened for such divergent national acts as David Allen Coe (country), Melissa Ferrick (folk), Fred Eaglesmith (Alternative) and the Fleshtones (Rock), each time well received. She even sat in with the Fleshtones for a song, and John Suvannavejh from the Metroland had this to say; Harkes was freed to let loose with her raspy, blues-inflected croon. Although it certainly doesnt hurt to have one of the finest garage bands in the land backing you, Harkes deep-hearted rendition was absolutely mesmerizing, and even gave Mr. Van Morrison a run for his money.