July 8–Berkeley Rasputin‘s Sunday afternoon concerts always keep you guessing with what genre of music you might stumble upon while shopping on Telegraph on a gorgeous afternoon, and if you caught last week’s installment you will not soon forget it. Kim Kylland heads the band Ghost Town Jenny with her husband Johann Svensson and three band members; her powerful voice rang out clearly during her engaging performance.
Her lyrics and vocals are reminiscent of Jenny Lewis (Rilo Kiley), and seeing as Lewis is based out of Southern California, it looks like we have our very own talented Jenny songstress here in the Bay Area. While their simpler strummed ballads have more in common with todays indie-rock darlings, their new album features many danceable tunes that recall Björk and Florence & the Machine.
The band cites influences in mythology, folklore, wilderness and cinema– Kylland studied Scandinavian Language and Literature at UC Berkeley and Svensson (band member and husband) is from Sweden. Their sound includes danceable tunes as well as simpler strummed ballads. The richness to their music certainly makes me want to don a whimsical gown like Kylland and run through the forest on a starry night, or dance wildly in a grassy meadow around a fire. The band also greeted downtown Berkeley last week at Bec’s Bar & Bistro for their Singer-Songwriter Showcase, alongside Foxtails Brigade and Benjamin Brown. Check them out tonight in San Francisco TONIGHT (Wed/ July 18, 10pm) at the Love/Haight Records.
(Kylland and Svensson, photo by Claire Vogel)
By Shauna C. Keddy
