Performing at your own birthday party shows an incredible dedication to your art. That's what Angela Brannan will be doing next Saturday at Beaner's. (Another performer on that bill, Stephanie Dykema, will also be celebrating a birthday, but we'll get to her next week when we feature her group the Brushstrokes.)
The West Duluth gig is special for Brennan for another reason: It's a CD release show for the former Harbor City International student's new album. To celebrate the occasion, we sent a few questions out to the singer/songwriter:
Budgeteer: I read that you began writing songs as an excuse to bring up ideas, observations and experiences you could never fit into conversation. Are these just extraneous thoughts, or are they of a manner that's perhaps too confrontational for casual conversation? Can you give us some examples of what issues you tackle?
Brannan: The topics of my lyrics are usually not too political or extreme, but more about experiences I have had that people don't tend to listen to in daily conversation, though they are monumental in my life and personal growth.
They range from the idea that we're all coming from different paths of life, but we're all still human; therefore, we all have our limitations, but hopefully one of those limitations is not failing to strive to be a better human. [Other topics range from] a Christian falling in love with a Muslim to how much someone who has died is missed by all those they left behind. These seem to be the kinds of things that get old to a listener who is not involved but is relived everyday by the person directly connected to the event(s).
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I think a song keeps those moments alive so I, and hopefully others, can relate and relive them -- yet not feel so alone.
On the subject of lyrics, are you pretty open about what your songs are about, or do you like to leave some things unexplained and mysterious?
I'm pretty open about what the songs are about. The thing I keep most hidden is who experienced them firsthand: me or someone else. I like when a song brings up that conversation because I do want to talk about it -- that's why I put it in a song for so many people to hear. I want to talk about it; I just don't know how else to get it out and still be taken seriously.
What did you learn about yourself and your art when you studied abroad in Scotland?
I met a drummer in Scotland who accompanied me on African drums and the sound caught a lot of people's attention.
When we moved back to the States four months later, we continued playing together and expanded the percussion to Hank, Celtic and Middle Eastern drums.
It added so much texture to my songs, I decided it was something I needed on the next CD. I feel that, after awhile, my songs begin to sound annoyingly alike, but when other musicians add their own sounds, the mood of each tune is enhanced and individualized a little more -- I love it. I still like playing solo, but I also really enjoy the sound created by playing with others.
Your selected fields of study (biology and international peace studies) make for an intriguing combination. How did you get involved in those two specific areas, and is there some sort of dream job out there that would allow you to do both at the same time?
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In elementary school I had a sign on my desk with a picture of a manatee and a note that said "Future marine biologist sits here."
When I moved back to Duluth and transferred in to UWS, I took a political science course for a general-education requirement and fell in love with the program.
One professor there is responsible for keeping me in school, and planting in me a passion for world politics and peace building. I went with this professor and others on an annual trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2009 and really sank into the study of conflict and the resolution/reconstruction efforts.
An ideal job for me would be working in the reconstruction of a conflict zone, taking into account economic, political, social and environmental aspects of that region. I want to be on the ground, in the dirt and working for (and with) the people who have survived such atrocities we are lucky enough not to experience here in the United States.
Finally, how did you start working with the illustrious Eric Swanson?
I took a class at my high school, Harbor City International, called Rock 'n' Roll Boot Camp. The requirements were: make a band; write one song; cover one song (a pre-existing recording); record them in a professional studio; and market the final product. My band was called Glycerin Tears -- we even had T-shirts and sold out [our products]. I played electric rhythm guitar and sang lead vocals. We wrote a song about the creation of the school and making dreams and high goals reality, and we covered Cheap Trick's "I Want You to Want Me."
These tracks were recorded at the Scared Heart Music Center by Eric Swanson. A few months later I e-mailed him asking what he charged per hour.
I'm now working on my fourth recording project with Eric, which will be released July 24 at Beaner's Central (see "News to Use" box).
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I will always be a Duluth girl at heart, so I like my recordings to be laid down locally, and the sounds from that space and Eric's years of experience are too great an opportunity to let pass.
NEWS TO USE
Angela Brannan will play a CD release show at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 24, at Beaner's Central. Stephanie Dykema, Mages and the Boomchucks are also on the bill. Cost is $5.
