Seattle Theatre Group (STG) presents Brandi Carlile with special guest Katie Herzig on Saturday, October 24, 2009 at 8:00pm at the Paramount Theatre.
A gifted singer/songwriter whose rich voice and literate storytelling belie her youth (she was only 23 when she released her major-label debut), Brandi Carlile was born in the small town of Ravensdale, WA, an isolated community 50 miles away from Seattle. With few neighbors or friends nearby, Carlile grew up learning to make her own entertainment, camping and hiking in the nearby woods and teaching herself to sing. Carlile grew up listening to the classic country music her parents doted on (Patsy Cline remains Carlile's favorite singer), and she made her stage debut at the age of eight after she was taken to a local country radio show by her mother.
At 17, Carlile picked up the guitar, having developed a taste for rock & roll through Elton John's classic albums of the 1970s (she cites Tumbleweed Connection as a particular favorite), and she began hitting the Seattle bar scene, playing anywhere she could get a gig (including a stint singing backup for an Elvis Presley tribute act). While playing clubs, she encountered a band called the Fighting Machinists, featuring twin brothers Tim Hanseroth on guitar and Phil Hanseroth. Impressed by their instrumental skills and spot-on harmonies, Carlile became an instant fan of the Fighting Machinists, and when the group broke up, she persuaded the Hanseroth twins to form a group with her.
While they started out as an aggressive rock & roll band, Carlile's emotionally powerful songwriting and acoustic guitar work soon became the dominant component of the group's sound, and they began touring regularly, headlining small venues and opening shows for Dave Matthews, Shawn Colvin, and India.Arie. In 2000, Carlile recorded the first of several self-released recordings that sold briskly at shows, and in 2005 Carlile was signed to Columbia Records, releasing a self-titled album later that same year. The album earned enthusiastic reviews, and Carlile was named one of 2005's "Artists to Watch" by Rolling Stone. In 2006, Carlile and her band began work on her second Columbia album, with T-Bone Burnett producing. Titled The Story, it was released in spring 2007.
Tickets: $30.50, not including applicable fees. Tickets are on sale now at Tickets.com, in person at the Paramount or Moore Theatres box offices, 24-hour kiosks located outside The Paramount & Moore Theatres, charge by phone at 877-STG-4TIX, or online at STGPresents.org.
Seattle Theatre Group is the 501 (c)(3) non-profit arts organization that operates the historic Paramount and Moore Theatres in Seattle, Washington. Our mission is to make diverse performing arts and education an integral part of our region's cultural identity while keeping these two landmark venues alive and vibrant. STG presents a range of performances from Broadway, off-Broadway, dance and jazz to comedy, concerts of all genres, speakers and family shows - at both historic theatres in Seattle and venues throughout the Puget Sound and Portland, Oregon.
