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Laura Veirs – Influential Singer / Songwriter

Image credit – Kill Rock Stars

One of the many things that are great about Portland Oregon is that a lot of this country’s best music from the last 10 years has originated here including folk/alternative country music by singer/songwriter Laura Veirs.

Born in 1973, like many musicians Laura’s journey to becoming a recording artist didn’t start out with a focus on music, she mastered the Chinese language and went to China to become a translator for an archaeological dig.

Image Credit – Always On The Run

Music Career

In 1999, Veirs released a self-titled album, which was recorded live and featuring just herself and guitar. 2003 saw the release of Troubled by the Fire, accompanied by veteran musicians such as Bill Frisell. She then signed to Nonesuch and released Carbon Glacier. She also signed to Bella Union for European distribution. Year of Meteors followed in August 2005, and was selected by the New York Times as a “critic’s choice”.

Veirs released her last full-length for Nonesuch, Saltbreakers, in 2007. July Flame appeared in January 2010 on her own Raven Marching Band Records. The Washington Post praised it.

In November 2011, Veirs released the album Tumble Bee: Laura Veirs Sings Folk Songs for Children. The album presents mostly traditional songs and features an array of guest musicians, including Colin MeloyJim James, and Bela Fleck. Tumble Bee won a Parents’ Choice Award in 2012.

In September 2012, her first feature film soundtrack was released: Hello I Must Be Going. The exclusive soundtrack features eight instrumental versions of previously released songs, five catalog favorites, and one new vocal track, “Spring Song”.

In August 2013, she released Warp and Weft. In 2015, she worked on the album Carrie and Lowell by Sufjan Stevens. Veirs husband and long-term collaborator Tucker Martine engineered some of the album.

Veirs was a lead songwriter for the 2016 album case/lang/veirs, a collaborative project between Veirs, k.d. lang and Neko Case. The album received positive reviews and a Metacritic rating of 82.

Image credit – www.flickr.com

Music Label

Besides her successful solo career, Laura also manages a record label (Raven Marching Band Records) that’s become a platform for other recording artists in Portland and from across the United States to launch their solo careers as well.

Learn more about her music by visiting her website at https://lauraveirs.com/.

 

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