Press Reviews

(Selected press quotes below.  For full reviews and feature articles, please visit artist's Digital Presskit.)

What the critics say...

“The trio draw on everything from acoustic punk to Old Time to country love ballads to create a sound that’s both dreamy and jarring, a hypnotic, languid ebb and flow of instruments and vocals that slowly warm the soul and treat the senses to a musical palate worthy of a lazy Sunday afternoon brunch on the outside patio of a shabby-chic restaurant.”
-Steve Wildsmith, The Daily Times, May 23, 2008

“On Borrowed Arms, the trio’s second recording, every tune is magic: the melodies crystalline, the harmonies supple and complex, the rhythms offbeat and groove-deep.”
-Sam Prestianni, SF Weekly, March 5, 2008

“…mixing high musicianship and bright ideas with street-band roughness.”
- Ben Ratliff, New York Times, 1/23/07

“Together with cellist Marika Hughes and drummer Shahzad Ismaily, Kihlstedt created a special atmosphere at the Bimhuis in which enchanting and heavy moments went hand in hand with sober relativism.  The accessible songs revealed an extra dimension by the fragile, sensitive interaction between the musicians.”
- Koen Schouten, Volskrant

“[2 Foot Yard] inventively straddles the classical and vernacular world without compromise to either side… Kihlstedt is a monster virtuoso… a truly original songwriter, and an inventive, singular artist…”
- Daniel Buckley, Stereophile Magazine

“…a head-spinning collection that melds classical virtuosity, folk soul, and pop imagination.”
- Bradley Bambarger, Billboard

“Kihlstedt has a remarkable musical range, which she unifies through sheer force of personality.  Much of her playing is extreme, but it’s a disciplined extremism that never sprawls…a rich, accomplished album from a musician…teeming with things to say.”
- Clive Bell, Wire

“If anyone can make the avant-garde friendly, Carla Kihlstedt can – she has a resume that musicians twice her age would envy.  It’s rare for such an excellent musician to also be an accomplished composer, but Kihlstedt is – and she uses that skill to weave familiarity and discomfort in ways that can be heartbreaking.”
- Sarah Bardeen, East Bay Express

“The ingredient that separates Kihlstedt in any musical setting is her emotional intensity – you never forget where she is onstage, whether she’s cutting in with the perfect stroke or contributing a plaintive howl.  The layers that Kihlstedt adds to her own music – weaving the violin in and out, over and around her voice, using her vocals as a counterpoint to her supple tunes – are nothing short of stunning.”
- David Hadrawnek, SFweekly.com

“This new bohemian is an unorthodox song generator.  She honors the pre-beat poet Ken Patchen putting music to his words and coils her own poetry around a wide array of sounds.  Her trio never seems to repeat approaches here, varying the music throughout.  Kihlstedt’s music is pure theatre.”
- Mark Corroto, All About Jazz