Three Imaginary Girls - Ingrid Michaelson

Flickr photo of the day: Ingrid Michaelson

ChrisB — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:56:25 +0000

I spent most of my day yesterday (which was pretty good overall - even for a Monday) bemoaning how I wasn't going to see Ingrid Michaelson at Neumo's last night.

Fortunately, awesome photographer Kirk Stauffer was and he put this lovely photo in the TIG Flickr pool.

New Ingrid Michaelson video: "Be OK"

ChrisB — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:42:44 +0000

This video is for the song "Be OK" by the ridiculously de-lovely Ingrid Michaelson, who has been one of my favorite singer/songwriters of the past year.

Photo Essay: Ingrid Michaelson at Easy Street and Neumo's

Jason Tang — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 04:59:43 +0000

10 Nov 2008

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New York native Ingrid Michaelson heated up a chilly Seattle evening, as she played an acoustic in-store set at Easy Street Records followed by a sold-out show at Neumo's last Monday. She first garnered national attention a couple years ago when her songs were featured on the popular TV series "Grey's Anatomy." Since then, her single "The Way I Am" was featured on the Old Navy Fall 2007 advertising campaign and she has recently been on tours with Dave Matthews Band and Jason Mraz.

Michaelson was joined by band mates Bess Rogers (guitar), Allie Moss (guitar), Elliot Jacobson (drums), and Chris Kuffner (bass) for the in-store performance, much to the surprise of even Easy Street Records owner, Matt Vaughan. The six-song acoustic set was followed by a signing and meet & greet with Ingrid. A webcast of the set can be found on the Easy Street Records site.

British singer-songwriter David Ford started the Neumo's show off in style, as he put his looping skills and passionate vocals on display.

Fellow Brit Newton Faulkner followed with his unique guitar playing style (which consists of rhythmic tapping and unusual plucking patterns accompanied by organ pedals) and closed his set with an amazing rendition of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody."

Ingrid Michaelson took the stage shortly before 10 PM with her band and immediately connected with the sold out Neumo's crowd. Her set consisted of a mix of songs from her debut album Boys and Girls and her new one, Be OK. She kept the audience entertained in between, including a hilarious Sarah Palin impression and jokingly played a song request in exchange for an audience member. The melodies and harmonies on songs such as "The Chain" showcased the simplistic yet powerfully emotional and seemingly effortless vocals which have rocketed Michaelson to the top of the charts.

Ingrid Michaelson will be back in town on Saturday, December 13 at The Paramount as part of the The Mountain's Winter Warmth concert, featuring The Pretenders, Matt Nathanson, and Augustana. Her soothing voice will surely keep your ears warm from the Seattle cold.

Songs to check out:
David Ford: "Go To Hell", "Song For The Road"
Newton Faulkner: "Dream Catch Me", "People Should Smile More", Teardrop"
Ingrid Michaelson: "Be OK", "Breakable", "The Chain", "The Way I Am"

The rest of my photos from the Easy Street in-store and Neumo's show can be found here and here.

She'll keep your ears warm from the Seattle cold.

Ingrid Michaelson @ Nectar

ChrisB — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 15:59:04 +0000

21 Jan 2008

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It’s no secret that the recording industry is in peril: Major labels are suing their best customers, releasing bullshit every day (or at least every Tuesday), abandoning stars that have made lots of money for them in the past, and utterly failing to grasp how to effectively use the internet.

If I was an executive at a major label, I would be completely terrified of Ingrid Michaelson. She’s a soft-spoken, nice, sweet singer-songwriter from New York who is only 28 years old. She’s become a sort of phenomenon online and on television with her songs appearing regularly on the show “Grey’s Anatomy” and in an Old Navy commercial. She’s selling out shows across the country weeks in advance (including this one at Nectar last Monday night) and is gaining fans every day. Her second album, Girls and Boys, is selling quite well. And she’s doing it without a label. I wouldn’t say she’s big with the indie crowds (a search of “Ingrid Michaelson” on Pitchfork turned up exactly zero entries) but “indie cred” is not something her fan base concerns themselves with anyway.

She probably will eventually sign with a major label and already employs a management team to help with landing her songs on television shows, but I still know of no other recent, unsigned artist to achieve such success so fast, doing what major labels are supposed to do, but without their help.

Shortly after the Nectar doors opened, it was already uncomfortably crowded. Uncomfortable would come to be an operative term for most of the night. It was difficult to find a place to see anywhere in the club and the time between the encore and proper end of her show was awkward to say the least. At times throughout the set she appeared to be exhausted from the constant touring but that didn’t affect her voice and it did not make her appear any less likeable.

Playing songs mostly from Girls and Boys, Michaelson sounded understated and lovely through Nectar’s PA system. Her first song, “Breakable,” immediately reminded me of Regina Spektor, and at other times she appeared to have been influenced by listening to Cole Porter musicals. Michaelson captivated the crowd for most of the night with her low-key, but often very pretty, singing and her clever stage banter. She sat down and played a keyboard throughout most of her 70 minute set, only joined by another young woman to play guitar and sing backing harmonies.

Michaelson got the biggest applause of the night when she played “The Way I Am,” which was featured in the aforementioned Old Navy ad; it is a simple but witty and catchy love song. With lines like “I’d buy you Rogaine when you start losing your hair,” it is a little offbeat but it is also very sweet.

On Monday night Nectar was filled up with her fans, most of whom were women who probably know her work from “Grey’s Anatomy.” She was very engaging with the crowd, interacting personally with one child who was, I believe, four years old and one woman in the balcony who was enjoying her being over twenty-one quite a bit.

When the night was over, I found myself quite satisfied. It was nice to see an artist find success by taking different path than most artists take, and to see someone likeable play to a packed crowd. Most importantly, though, the night was about listening to good songs sung beautifully by a promising singer/songwriter.

Playing songs mostly from Girls and Boys, Michaelson sounded understated and lovely through Nectar’s PA system.