A folkie in punk's clothing, Ani DiFranco battled successfully against the Goliath of corporate rock to emerge as one of the most influential and inspirational cult heroines of the 1990s. A resolute follower of D.I.Y. ethos, DiFranco released her records through her own indie label, Righteous Babe, slowly but steadily building a devout... [+] Read More

A folkie in punk's clothing, Ani DiFranco battled successfully against the Goliath of corporate rock to emerge as one of the most influential and inspirational cult heroines of the 1990s. A resolute follower of D.I.Y. ethos, DiFranco released her records through her own indie label, Righteous Babe, slowly but steadily building a devout grassroots following on the strength of a relentless tour schedule; an ardent feminist and an open bisexual, her songs tackled issues like rape, abortion, and sexism with insight and compassion, the music's empowering attitude and anger tempered by the poignant candor of singer/songwriter confessionalism.


Born in Buffalo, NY, on September 23, 1970, DiFranco began her career at the age of nine, when her guitar teacher helped her land her first gig -- performing a set of Beatles covers -- at an area coffeehouse. Befriended by the likes of Suzanne Vega and Michelle Shocked, she later gave up music to study ballet, but at the age of 14 returned to the guitar and began composing her first songs. A year later, alienated from her crumbling family structure, she left home, living with friends while making the rounds of the Buffalo folk club circuit.


By the age of 19 DiFranco had written over 100 original songs, and after briefly studying art she relocated to New York City to further her musical aspirations; besieged by requests from fans for tapes of her performances, she recorded a demo and pressed 500 copies of a self-titled cassette to sell at shows. The tape -- a Spartan acoustic folk collection of intensely personal essays on failed relationships and gender inequities -- quickly sold out, and in 1990 DiFranco founded Righteous Babe to better distribute her recordings, which were slowly spreading across the country on the strength of a substantial word-of-mouth following.


In 1991, after issuing the assured Not So Soft, DiFranco hit the road alone, touring the nation in her Volkswagen and playing gigs wherever she could find them; her cult blossomed, and her distinct image -- shaved head, tattoos, and body piercings -- soon became the de rigueur look for her fans as well. As albums like 1992's Imperfectly and 1993's Puddle Dive expanded her musical ambitions as well as her following, DiFranco became the subject of considerable major-label interest, yet she steadfastly rejected all offers as Righteous Babe grew to become a highly viable business venture.


DiFranco continued playing over 200 dates a year, and soon even the mainstream media took notice of her cottage-industry music; after 1994's masterful Out of Range, she exploded with the following year's Not a Pretty Girl, which garnered notice from outlets ranging from CNN to The New York Times. A sprawling, eclectic work detailing a heated love affair with a man (much to the chagrin of her lesbian followers), 1996's Dilate even debuted in the Top 100 of the Billboard charts, a stunning achievement for an independent release. The live set Living in Clip followed in 1997.


Early in 1998, DiFranco released the studio effort Little Plastic Castle; her most musically diverse release yet, it also was her highest-charting album to date, and set the stage for the release of Up Up Up Up Up Up the following year. Another new LP, To the Teeth, appeared in 1999 as well, and in mid-2000 came the release of the odds-and-ends compilation Swing Set. Revelling: Reckoning appeared in spring 2001. In 2002, DiFranco trudged on; a road warrior at heart, in September of that year she issued the double-disc So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter, her first live album since 1997's Living in Clip. The So Much Shouting set captured handpicked favorites by DiFranco and three previously unreleased songs.


The following year's Evolve added funk, jazz, and Latin elements to the mix, while 2004's Educated Guess was performed completely by DiFranco. Knuckle Down, co-produced by Joe Henry, arrived in 2005. In 2006, the eighth in her Official Bootleg series, Carnegie Hall (recorded live on April 2, 2002), was released in the spring, and then, shortly after the singer announced she was pregnant, her studio album Reprieve came out that August. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide [-] Hide

One of the major singer/songwriters of the anti-folk movement, Brenda Kahn shared all the DIY ethics and punk attitude typical of its leading figures, as well as its dissatisfaction with the ever more conservative folk establishment. What was more, Kahn sometimes made her punk roots even more explicit -- and rankled purist sensibilities even... [+] Read More

One of the major singer/songwriters of the anti-folk movement, Brenda Kahn shared all the DIY ethics and punk attitude typical of its leading figures, as well as its dissatisfaction with the ever more conservative folk establishment. What was more, Kahn sometimes made her punk roots even more explicit -- and rankled purist sensibilities even further -- by delving into full-on electric rock & roll; at various points, she also blended touches of jazz, country, and spoken word. She enjoyed a brief major-label association in the early '90s before getting unceremoniously dropped, but resurfaced later in the decade and founded her own label.

Kahn was born in Connecticut in 1967, and grew up mostly in New Jersey. While attending New York University, she fell in with the anti-folk scene that was emerging on Manhattan's Lower East Side during the mid-'80s. Filtered through a distinctly urban lens of perception, her songs were prickly and personal, topical without being starry-eyed, and often enlivened with a biting sense of humor. Naturally, all of this made her anathema to folk traditionalists, but it earned her an underground following alongside scenesters like Lach, Kirk Kelly, and Roger Manning (her paramour for a time). Kahn took a break from the scene to study in London, then returned and issued her debut album, Goldfish Don't Talk Back, on the Brooklyn-based indie label Comm3 in 1990.

Kahn subsequently moved to Minneapolis and toured the Midwest extensively, building a stronger following outside of the now-dwindling New York scene. In 1992, she put out a limited-edition 7" single called Life in the Drug War Trenches on the local indie label Crackpot. Two of the single's three songs, "I Don't Sleep, I Drink Coffee Instead" and "Mint Juleps and Needles," caught the attention of producer David Kahne and helped her land a deal with Columbia Records subsidiary Chaos. Now back in New York, Kahn's major-label debut arrived in 1992 in the form of Epiphany in Brooklyn, which contained versions of both of the aforementioned single tracks. She toured the world in support of acts like Bob Dylan and the Kinks, and entered the studio in late 1994 with producer Tim Patalan (best known for his work with Sponge) and a full, plugged-in backing band.

The product of those sessions, Destination Anywhere, was scheduled for release in early 1995. Unfortunately, the Chaos imprint was shut down just two weeks beforehand, and Columbia dropped Kahn from its roster. Eventually, they did license the album to Shanachie, which released it in 1996; its appearance allowed Jeff Buckley fans to hear one of the singer's final studio performances, backing Kahn on the track "Faith Salons." While waiting for her music to get out of legal limbo, Kahn had issued an independent 7", "Hey Romeo," and taken a series of day jobs. After the Shanachie breakthrough, she and Patalan reconvened for another album, Outside the Beauty Salon, which was also released on Shanachie. In its wake, Kahn returned to her heavy touring schedule, and also formed her own label, Rocket 99. Its inaugural release was Hunger, a tribute to the late Buckley emphasizing spoken word pieces and featuring spare, jazzy backing from bassist Ernie Adzentoivich. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Though Michael Stipe had been a fan of Vic Chesnutt since the late '80s, producing his first two full-lengths, it took the Sweet Relief Two tribute album to make a star of him in mid-1996. The album featured artists such as Madonna, Hootie & the Blowfish, Smashing Pumpkins and R.E.M. covering the songs of Chesnutt, a paraplegic who was injured... [+] Read More

Though Michael Stipe had been a fan of Vic Chesnutt since the late '80s, producing his first two full-lengths, it took the Sweet Relief Two tribute album to make a star of him in mid-1996. The album featured artists such as Madonna, Hootie & the Blowfish, Smashing Pumpkins and R.E.M. covering the songs of Chesnutt, a paraplegic who was injured in a car accident when he was 18. The singer/songwriter began playing contemporary acoustic folk around Athens, GA soon after his injury. A show at the 40 Watt Club brought him to the attention of Stipe, who helped with production on 1990's Little and 1991's West of Rome, both on Texas Hotel Records. A documentary video of Chesnutt's life called Speed Racer was produced and directed by Peter Sillen in 1991, and has aired on PBS. Chesnutt's third album Drunk followed in late 1993, but the release of his fourth album was delayed by Chesnutt's membership in Brute, a project with members of Widespread Panic including David A. Schools, Michael Houser, Todd Nance, John Hermann, Johnny Hickman, David Lowery and John Keane. After Sweet Relief Two was released in July 1996, Capitol signed Chesnutt and released About to Choke, his major-label debut, in the fall of that year. The Salesman and Bernadette followed in 1998 on Capricorn and featured Lambchop as his backing band. The record's poor sales led him to be dropped by that label, but Chesnutt continued to record, cutting an album with Kelly and Nikki Keneipp called Roses for the Butt of All Our Merriment that was issued in 2000. That same year, he teamed up with longtime friend and admirer Kristin Hersh for a series of U.S. tour dates. The following year, Chesnutt issued Left to His Own Devices, a collection of rarities, outtakes, and demos. In 2003, Chesnutt struck a deal with the roots rock-oriented New West label, who released his album Silver Lake in 2003. Ghetto Bells, which features contributions from jazz guitarist Bill Frisell and multi-instrumentalist Van Dyke Parks, followed in 2005. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide [-] Hide

According to her own, undoubtedly semi-fictional account, Michelle Shocked was born Michelle Johnston in Dallas, TX, in 1962, where she spent her early childhood traveling around army bases. In 1977, she ran away from her Mormon fundamentalist mother to live with her father who introduced her to country bluesmen Big Bill Broonzy and Leadbelly,... [+] Read More

According to her own, undoubtedly semi-fictional account, Michelle Shocked was born Michelle Johnston in Dallas, TX, in 1962, where she spent her early childhood traveling around army bases. In 1977, she ran away from her Mormon fundamentalist mother to live with her father who introduced her to country bluesmen Big Bill Broonzy and Leadbelly, as well as contemporary songwriters Guy Clark and Randy Newman. She spent the next several years exploring the folk underground, spending the early '80s in Austin, where she began honing her own songwriting skills. After dropping out of the University of Texas, she moved to San Francisco where she quickly embraced the city's punk scene. When she returned home, her mother had her committed to a psychiatric hospital. She was released when her insurance ran out. Shocked left Texas in 1983, traveled throughout the U.S., and became an activist in the squatters movement in New York. In 1984, she moved to Amsterdam.

In 1986, Shocked returned to the U.S. and, while volunteering at the Kerrville Folk Festival, English producer Pete Lawrence was impressed by her campfire-side playing and recorded her on his Sony Walkman. The recordings surfaced in the fall of that year as The Texas Campfire Tapes on Cooking Vinyl Records and became a surprise hit in England, eventually topping the independent charts. The success led to her signing with Mercury Records in 1988. Short Sharp Shocked, produced by Pete Anderson in 1988, displayed even more talent, combining the informal, tradition-rooted folkiness of The Texas Campfire Tapes with a strong postmodern feminist perspective and punk attitude. The album quickly earned her respect among the alternative community and critics. In an unexpected move, Shocked returned in 1989 with Captain Swing, a '40s-style big band swing outing that surprised her fans initially but had no shortage of strong material. In 1992, she took something of a step back with Arkansas Traveler, a rootsy collection of songs based on the blackface minstrelsy that covered all forms of early American, homegrown music. In 1993, Mercury finally became fed up with her confusing style jumping and refused to release her proposed gospel album. She then left on a solo tour, selling her newly recorded, independently produced (with Tony Berg) Kind Hearted Woman. Late in 1995, Shocked began legal action against Mercury Records to break her contract.

By 1996, Shocked was released from Mercury and embarked on the First Annual Underground Test Site Tour, with Fianchna O'Braonain. Another independent release, Artists Make Lousy Slaves, was sold at the shows. Kind Hearted Woman was picked up for commercial re-release by Private Music in 1996, and as a condition of her release from Mercury, her old label released a "best of" compilation, Mercury Poise: 1988-1995 the same year. After laying low for several years, in 2002 Shocked re-emerged with a new album, the gospel-influenced Deep Natural, and her own record label, Mighty Sound. In addition to releasing new work from Shocked, Mighty Sound began a program of expanded reissues of her back catalog, which she gained control of following her release from Mercury.

In mid-2005, Shocked audaciously released a new trilogy of very different albums all on the same day, June 7 -- Don't Ask Don't Tell, Mexican Standoff, and Got No Strings. Mighty Sound also made the three albums available as a set called Threesome. ~ Chris Woodstra

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John Wesley Harding may take his name from a Bob Dylan album and he's a modern-day folksinger, but with the biting, cynical observations in his songs and sharp sense of humor combined with winning melodies, he shows his true forefathers are Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe with a hint of Billy Bragg. Far from being a follower or strict revivalist,... [+] Read More

John Wesley Harding may take his name from a Bob Dylan album and he's a modern-day folksinger, but with the biting, cynical observations in his songs and sharp sense of humor combined with winning melodies, he shows his true forefathers are Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe with a hint of Billy Bragg. Far from being a follower or strict revivalist, however, Wes draws on a wide assortment of musical influences, pushing the boundaries of the all-too-often formulaic singer/songwriter tag to create something all his own.

Wesley Harding Stace was born in Hastings, East Sussex, England in 1965. He taught himself guitar, picking out songs by John Prine, Loudon Wainwright and Bob Dylan and eventually began writing on his own as a teenager. In 1988, he cut short his Ph.D. studies at Cambridge University in favor of a career in music. An opening slot for John Hiatt attracted the attention of Demon Records who signed him and released the live It Happened One Night the same year.

In 1990, he teamed up with producer Andey Paley and members of Elvis Costello's Attractions (the association would cause Costello comparisons that would continue to haunt him) to record Here Comes the Groom for Sire. He supported the album alone in the U.S. where his spirited live shows attracted a great deal of word-of-mouth attention and strong cult following, especially in alternative and college radio. In 1991 he followed with The Name Above the Title and Why We Fight in 1992. While he received consistently good reviews, expanded on his cult following through constant touring, and finally shook (for the most part) the Elvis Costello comparisons, lack of a substantial push from Sire led to his leaving the label by the mid-90s. The self-financed John Wesley Harding's New Deal, was finished in 1996 and picked up for release by Rhino's short-lived Forward label. In 1998, he signed to Zero Hour and released Awake. In 1999, he followed with Trad Arr Jones, a collection of traditional folk songs written or arranged by Nic Jones; 2000 saw the release of The Confessions of St. Ace. He returned in 2004 with Adam's Apple. ~ Chris Woodstra, All Music Guide [-] Hide

The cover to Billy Bragg's Talking With the Taxman About Poetry features the subtitle "the difficult third album," and while it's obviously meant as a joke, there's also a certain truth to the statement -- after two EPs and a full album that only rarely featured anything other than Bragg's voice and electric guitar, Talking With the... [+] Read More

The cover to Billy Bragg's Talking With the Taxman About Poetry features the subtitle "the difficult third album," and while it's obviously meant as a joke, there's also a certain truth to the statement -- after two EPs and a full album that only rarely featured anything other than Bragg's voice and electric guitar, Talking With the Taxman found him and producers John Porter and Kenny Jones trying to add a bit of polish to Bragg's stark sound without losing either the charm of his performances or the power of his political statements. While nearly all the tracks on Talking With the Taxman feature Bragg alongside other musicians (among them Johnny Marr and Kirsty MacColl), the arrangements are purposefully spare, and ultimately they sweeten the songs without getting in the way of Bragg's homey melodies or passionate lyrics. However, as a songwriter, Billy's heart was stronger than his head on this album; while Talking With the Taxman features several of his best love songs (such as "The Marriage," "Greetings to the New Brunette," and "Wishing the Days Away") and some superb character studies ("Levi Stubbs' Tears" and "The Passion"), the political numbers are unexpectedly strident and obvious, especially the clumsy "Ideology" and "Help Save the Youth of America." Talking With the Taxman About Poetry proved that Bragg could take his music in a new direction and still hold on to the qualities that made his songs so special; too bad his political instincts were not as keen as his musical ones at the time. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide [-] Hide

On her relatively spare sixth album (which features only one other musician, percussionist/vocalist Andy Stochansky, and, on one song, singer Kate Fenner), Ani DiFranco takes on a few expected topics, such as abortion ("Tiptoe"), capital punishment ("Crime for Crime"), and why she isn't on a major label ("The Million You Never Made"). But much... [+] Read More

On her relatively spare sixth album (which features only one other musician, percussionist/vocalist Andy Stochansky, and, on one song, singer Kate Fenner), Ani DiFranco takes on a few expected topics, such as abortion ("Tiptoe"), capital punishment ("Crime for Crime"), and why she isn't on a major label ("The Million You Never Made"). But much of the disc is given over to introspective ruminations on personal life and love. As usual, the singer is not shy (despite a song of that title) about offering criticism of the person or persons she's addressing, but she is also self-critical and even, on "Sorry I Am," apologetic. The songs do not add up to the complete story of a relationship, but there are some deeply felt portraits here, especially "Light of Some Kind," in which the singer seems to be confessing to a man that she has been unfaithful to him with a woman. As usual, the imagery is urban and gritty; DiFranco is the kind of writer who likes to tell you that she's got last night's underwear in her back pocket as she rides home on the subway on the afternoon following an assignation. But the sometimes messy details are in the service of her view of reality, an unflinching one in which everything can be faced, even the songwriter's emotional torment. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide [-] Hide

On his third, and maybe most conceptually complete, album, Vic Chesnutt emerges as that rare kind of artist who can see right into the living room of small-town America. Drunk opens with one of Chesnutt's more overtly hook-oriented songs, the punchy "Sleeping Man," which also appears later in the album as a slightly twangier reprise, and is a... [+] Read More

On his third, and maybe most conceptually complete, album, Vic Chesnutt emerges as that rare kind of artist who can see right into the living room of small-town America. Drunk opens with one of Chesnutt's more overtly hook-oriented songs, the punchy "Sleeping Man," which also appears later in the album as a slightly twangier reprise, and is a fine commentary on the insatiable hunger for human spectacle that plagues American culture. "One of Many" is a bleak tale of murder and execution that finds Chesnutt truly at the top of his game lyrically and melodically. A fine example of Chesnutt's songcraft is the plaintive narrative "When I Ran Off and Left Her," which is indicative of his style in that its laid-back delivery masks a certain amount of tension and paranoia. A consistent theme on Drunk, as well as in Chesnutt's other work, is transition -- whether escaping or just moving -- to someplace else. Very few artists can communicate these kinds of themes as eloquently and as uniquely as Chesnutt, and Drunk is a fine example of how he can turn seemingly self-absorbed songs into something strangely universal. The distorted, guttural title cut and the bouncy "Super Tuesday" offer further proof of Chesnutt's impressive ability to evoke different moods. In the end, it is probably that ability which makes his genius the most readily apparent. ~ Matt Fink, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Brenda Kahn's Epiphany in Brooklyn takes the same approach to lyrical content as Jack Kerouac's novel On the Road, in that her songs paint portraits of characters from all over the landscape of the United States. Her main setting is New York City, which is captured appropriately in the caffeine buzz of the first track, "I Don't Sleep, I Drink... [+] Read More

Brenda Kahn's Epiphany in Brooklyn takes the same approach to lyrical content as Jack Kerouac's novel On the Road, in that her songs paint portraits of characters from all over the landscape of the United States. Her main setting is New York City, which is captured appropriately in the caffeine buzz of the first track, "I Don't Sleep, I Drink Coffee Instead." The album closes with "In Indiana," where she sings, "Brooklyn is a long cab ride away." In between, her destinations include the Mojave desert, Ohio and the Bible Belt. The albums mood fluctuates between excitement (the Dylanesque "Mint Juleps and Needles" and "She's in Love") and the despair caused by relationships ("My Lover" and "Lost"). The bleak "Sleepwalking" is a subtle masterpiece, with its observations of the contradictions inherent in the United States of 1992. Brenda Kahn's folk-punk sound and highly energized lyrics make Epiphany in Brooklyn a hidden gem. ~ Brian Flota, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Ani DiFranco doesn't really expand her sonic palette on Dilate, but she doesn't need to. DiFranco racked up a dedicated cult audience on the basis of her conviction. There's not much melody on any of her songs, but there are messages and, thankfully, a fair share of humor. Dilate suffers from a bit too much repetition, but when DiFranco lands on... [+] Read More

Ani DiFranco doesn't really expand her sonic palette on Dilate, but she doesn't need to. DiFranco racked up a dedicated cult audience on the basis of her conviction. There's not much melody on any of her songs, but there are messages and, thankfully, a fair share of humor. Dilate suffers from a bit too much repetition, but when DiFranco lands on a good hook -- such as "Superhero" or "Done Wrong" -- the results suggest that she could reach a wider audience. ~ Thom Owens, All Music Guide [-] Hide