Shanna Zell: Press

Shanna Zell Sings Her Way Into Our Hearts

You’ve gotta check out Shanna Zell, the singer/songwriter that stole our hearts with her performance at our Home Three event last Sunday. I was FLOORED with the amazing voice that came out of this petite adorable creature that night. Her writing is amazing, you will get lost in the lyrics. Check her out, and be prepared to see much more of her in the upcoming months. We are in talks to get her involved with some of our summer parties so stay tuned….

Shanna Zell (New York, N.Y.)
Alternative Pop

Shanna Zell is young in age but old in the soul, where it counts the most. At 23, Zell has already been performing for seven years, writing and singing songs about the vagaries of love, the wonders of sex and the truth of life. Zell's 2005 debut full-length, Hurricane Season, has garnered plenty of local airplay on WAIF, she's played dates at the Southgate House and has been a previous MidPoint featured artist.

Dig It: Lucinda Williams and Ann Wilson channel the spirit of Love (Arthur Lee's band and the emotion) and Rock.

Shanna Zell (New York, N.Y.)
Pop/Rock

Whether backed by a full Rock band or just singing with her acoustic guitar, singer/songwriter Zell's voice echoes with a passionate, aggressive force that makes her music stand out from some of her more timid peers. She dove into the NYC scene a few years ago, playing successful shows at esteemed venues like The Knitting Factory. Her first full-length album, Hurricane Season, features backing from musicians who have worked with everyone from Smashing Pumpkins to Tony Bennett and it has received good response from radio and Internet music sites. The album features the sultry Rock cut, "The Flatlands," which was chosen for the soundtrack of the awesomely-named indie flick, Dykeotomies, a comedy about a lesbian stand-up comedian.

Dig It: Alanis Morissette, Aimee Mann, Lisa Loeb. (Mike Bree, Music Editor)

With lyrics that expose the naked side of messy
relationships and a voice that nails you to the wall, it’s only a matter of time
before the spotlight lands on Shanna Zell. (www.myspace.com/shannazell)

The word "passivity" pops up in Zell's track "The Dig" and it just doesn't sound right coming out of her mouth. That's because there is no passivity in this young singer-songwriter's power folk that channels Tori and Ani in equal measure, with a ripping rock core.

Shanna Zell @ Sidewalk Cafe - 7/20/06
Usually I would wait until after seeing a show to review it, but I already know how great Shanna Zell's performance is going to be at the Sidewalk Cafe (6th & Ave A) this Thursday at 8pm. (New York-based Jeremiah Birnbaum will also be performing.)
Why do I know it will be great? Trajectory.
I'm a big fan of physics (and the Sidewalk Cafe, among other things), and Shanna Zell's career has been following a trajectory that's so 'outta this world' you can't help but jump on the rocket ship. Over the past several years, Shanna has matured into a soulful and ecelctic singer/songwriter with something to offer everyone (including Hip-Hop, Jazz and Country Western fans such as yours truly). Her gritty style and poetic lyrics keep your ears tuned and your heart in check -- and I'd be hard-pressed to think of a better thing to do than listen to her on a Thursday night at the Sidewalk Cafe.

Read an interview with Shanna on WildWritings.com!

Hello

Your music makes me wanna have sex, smoke cigarettes and walk the streets at night, go play europe, say hi to a bird, eat a good sandwich

All the best
/Chr.

"Janis Ian meets Spinal Tap: Never has quiet been so rocking."

A wind is blowing hard into the New York music scene.. Soulfoul like Tori, a bit of Alanis’s anger mixed with the rock edge of a Liz Phair, 22 year old singer-songwriter Shanna Zell provides a breath of fresh air with melody and touching lyrics perfect to bring the public out of the doldrums of today’s manufactured pop, lame hip-hop, or whiny ballads.

Zell’s Hurricane Season starts off loud and direct, the drums hammering listeners into the “Ectascy Parade.” “Running to the money but it’s the music that I’m craving,” Zell makes it perfectly obvious of her passion to be a rock star, but her lyrics are not without soul and creativity. The music is well produced and in sync with Shanna’s ear-soothing voice, stylish bass lines and quality guitar rifts from lead Jeremiah Burnbaum.

The first two tracks, including “The Dig,” are rock heavy and loud, but Hurricane Season is multidimensional, providing listeners with slower guitar tunes, piano ballads, and great pop that had several colleagues of mine dancing around the office. Slow ballads, including “46th St.” and “Don’t Go,” magnify Zell’s lyrical abilities and very appealing vocals. She is not, however, without a sense of anger and frustration. Make sure your kids aren’t listening to Flatlands, as I found myself back in high school reminded of Alanis’s Jagged Little Pill. Like Morrisette in 1995, Zell is young, but already has a strong sense of musical maturity.

I am partial to the great pop tune, and if you need a great folk-rock pick me up sail down to Track #7, “Midnight Tide.” Zell masters the art of transforming the simple acoustic chord progression into a light, meaningful, upbeat, pop-tune that in my opinion belongs on the Top 40 charts right now. It is on constant repeat on my I-pod and will have you “spinning like the mirrors on a disco-ball.”

The overall appeal for Hurricane Season is its diversity and coherent flow. It has pick-me ups, cool downs, and provides for auditory mysterious journeys. Close your eyes during Zell’s creative cover of the Church’s “Under the Milky Way,” it will whisk you away. There are tracks you can click straight to depending on your mood, but the album also flows nicely as a unit. In this era of I-Tunes and track downloads the album as a work of art may be obsolete, but Hurricane Season makes a case for the album as an art itself. Let’s just say I am glad that the first full length CD I bought in two years was Hurricane Season.

There is certainly room for growth in Zell’s music. She could do without reverb in some songs, and many musical effects included in “Flatlands” or ‘The Dig” are maybe too elaborate, critical only because she proves her melodic talent just fine without any bells and whistles. On that point, don’t forget to listen and pay attention to the last two tracks. “Kitchen Light” especially will have you falling into a daydream we have all experienced, strife, victory, loss, love, and searching all rolled into 4minutes and 15 seconds. She has a mastery of rhythm on guitar and piano that is on par with many major label acts.

Zell’s performance at her CD release party at the Makor Café on November 19th exuberated an overwhelming sense of confidence on stage. She not only lives and breathes her music but she loves performing it, which is revealed on the CD as well. The 2005 season of Hurricanes may have ended November 30th, but Hurricane Season is a good listen any time of the year. For Zell, I hope this is just her first storm to hit.

Shanna is a gifted performer, who's voice and lyrical prowess prove her to be wise beyond her 22 years. With emotional grit and raw sexual honesty reminiscent of Lucinda Williams and Tori Amos, she moves effortlessly from guitar to piano and back. She is a true talent to watch, a star on the rise.

Thank you for making me a GEM!
Check out how you helped on www.radiocrystalblue.com!