Anna Tivel Explained

Anna Tivel
Origin:Portland, Oregon, United States
Instrument:[1]
Years Active:2011–present[2]
Label:Fluff & Gravy

Anna Tivel is an American singer-songwriter from Portland, Oregon. She has released four studio albums on Portland-based Fluff & Gravy Records.[3] Her 2017 album Small Believer received positive reviews[4] [5] and was named a "Top 10 underheard album of 2017" by Ann Powers of NPR.[6] In 2019, NPR called her album The Question "one of the most ambitious folk records of 2019";[7] it was also listed by Paste as one of "10 essential folk albums from 2019".[8]

Biography

Tivel was born in La Conner, Washington and grew up in a musical family, learning violin and fiddle as a child. After moving to Portland at age 18, she developed an interest in songwriting and began to write and perform her own material.[9] Many of her songs are vignettes about the lives and struggles of ordinary people; she said in an interview "I'm drawn over and over to the small stories of people (myself included) just trying to get by, to do a little better, to feel some sort of beauty in an ugly world."[10] Tivel's songs are often somber in tone as she has said that she "just [doesn't] trust happy songs as much".[11]

Rolling Stone listed her as a standout performer at the 2019 AmericanaFest in Nashville, writing "In a week of countless songsmiths showcasing their attempt at that exact type of singer-songwriter storytelling, Tivel's winding, largely chorus-less tales shined and shimmered."[12] The magazine also named the lead single from The Question, "Fenceline", a "song you need to know".[13]

On her album The Question, she collaborated with engineer Brian Joseph and producer and musician Shane Leonard.[14]

In 2021, Tivel was reported to be appearing on the podcast Storybound.[15]

On May 31, 2024, Tivel will release her eighth album, Living Thing.[16]

Discography

Notes and References

  1. News: Kershner . Lauren . Portland Songwriter Anna Tivel Highlights Life's Hidden Stories . September 25, 2019 . Willamette Week . July 11, 2018.
  2. Web site: Brimstone Lullaby . CD Baby . September 25, 2019.
  3. Web site: Anna Tivel . Fluff & Gravy Records . September 25, 2019.
  4. News: Davies . Mike . Anna Tivel: Small Believer . September 25, 2019 . . October 2, 2017.
  5. News: Geneviève . Tremblay . Small Believer, Anna Tivel . September 25, 2019 . . October 13, 2017 . French.
  6. News: Powers . Ann . Ann Powers . Ann Powers' Top 10 Underheard Albums Of 2017 . September 25, 2019 . NPR . December 14, 2017.
  7. News: Walker . Jerad . Anna Tivel's 'The Question' Is One of the Most Ambitious Folk Records Of 2019 . September 25, 2019 . NPR . April 11, 2019.
  8. News: Johnson . Ellen . 10 Essential Folk Albums from 2019 (So Far) . September 25, 2019 . Paste . September 18, 2019.
  9. News: Hastad . Halee . Anna Tivel: Singing her diary . September 26, 2019 . What's Up! . September 4, 2018.
  10. News: Horvat . Robert . Baring her soul and music to the world: Interview with folk singer songwriter Anna Tivel . September 26, 2019 . Rearview Mirror . November 19, 2017.
  11. News: De Vore . Alex . Voice and Words: Anna Tivel tells the stories at Kitchen Sink Studios . September 26, 2019 . Santa Fe Reporter . January 9, 2018.
  12. News: Bernstein . Jonathan . AmericanaFest 2019: 25 Best Things We Saw . September 25, 2019 . . September 16, 2019.
  13. News: Bernstein . Jonathan . Song You Need to Know: Anna Tivel, 'Fenceline' . September 25, 2019 . . November 1, 2018.
  14. Web site: Anna Tivel's 'The Question' is One of the Most Ambitious Folk Records of 2019.
  15. Web site: Announcing Season 4 of the Storybound Podcast . June 4, 2021 . June 24, 2021.
  16. Web site: Watch Anna Tivel's video for "Bluebird" off upcoming LP 'Living Thing' . March 28, 2024 . May 19, 2024.