“Whether nailing an upbeat honky-tonk tune or a slow, sad story-song, Zoe Muth’s music is so honest and familiar, you’ll wonder why you haven’t heard it yet. Her self-titled, self-released debut won attention not only from her hometown (Seattle Weekly dubbed her “our own Emmylou”; tastemaker blog Sound on the Sound called her “without doubt, one of the finest songwriters in Seattle”) it also earned praise from the worldwide press. The record landed on No Depression’s annual Reader’s Poll as one of the Top 50 Albums of 2009, while Modern Acoustic magazine called her 2010’s “New Artist of the Year.””
Zoe and her band The Lost High Rollers make thier Pittsburgh debut tonight at Club Cafe’s early show on a bill with The Culture Vultures, touring behind the latest release, “Old Gold“. My thanks to her for taking the time to participate in this edition of First/Last.
- The first album you ever bought?
- The first record I remember buying by myself was the 45 of Madonna’s .Causing a Commotion. I remember buying the ‘New Jack City’ soundtrack, but my dad made me return it ?
- Your last album bought?
- I’m slightly ashamed to say I don’t buy a lot of music, I’m more of a music borrower. A lot of songs I get tired of if I listen too much. I buy a lot of records at the thrift store if they’re under a dollar. The last one I bought was The 50 Guitars of Tommy Garrett, “El Hombre”, which is actually really awesome. I’m less of a seeker and more someone who just kinda takes what comes their way kind of person, but I find a lot of really interesting things happen to come my way.
- Favorite album of all time?
- If I had to pick one, the closest would be Bob Dylan’s “Desire”, maybe Neil Young’s “ZUMA” or “American Stars and Bars”, but that might change tomorrow. Another recent favorite is Gerry Rafferty’s “Can I Have My Money Back?”
- Least favorite/most disappointing album?
- I don’t think I can answer that one.
- First concert attended?
- I didn’t see much live music until high school, my friends and I would go to these outdoor local concerts every weekend because we knew we could get beer and other stuff kids aren’t supposed to have. The first big show I remember was the last Grateful Dead show at Memorial Stadium in Seattle in 1995. People tell me it wasn’t a good show, but I just remember being amazed by it all, the band and the crowd. Another great show was seeing Neko Case back in 1998 when she was doing country music with Carolyn Mark. They called themselves the Corn Sisters with Neko just playing a snare drum. I remember being really blown away and inspired.
- Favorite concert ever?
- Bob Dylan at the Puyallup Fair, a state fair in Washington. He played ‘You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere’ and ‘One Too Many Mornings’ which I had never heard live before and the opener was Lucinda Williams. Can’t get any better than that. Also, maybe one of the best, Kathleen Edwards and John Doe acoustic at the Tractor Tavern.
- Least favorite concert?
- Again, hard to say, even the worst bands that sound like they haven’t even practiced, I try to look for something good.
- Any thoughts, experiences about Pittsburgh?
- I’ve never been there before, my favorite thing to do in a new city is to drive around and look at old houses and buildings. A couple of us wanted to see a ball game but I think the Pirates are out of town when we’re there. We all like old dive bars and cool old restaurants. I read about the Oyster House, maybe we’ll try it. Any suggestions?
Thanks, Zoe. If you have the time, the Warhol Museum seems to be a can’t miss spot.
