Wisconsinite and alternative country artist Whitney Mann is no stranger to praise in regards to her music. Mann, often regarded with esteem by both local and national publications and music industry individuals, has recently released her newest project, "The Western Sky," and it proves to be a just showing of why she has received so much positive attention.
The throw-back sounds she and her collaborators create on "The Western Sky" are filled with sincerity and a complex simplicity that leaves you thinking about the music long after listening to it. There are fun tracks that highlight the more playful side of Whitney, which completely complement the songs that have a more serious tone.
Though the project is only seven songs deep, the listener is exposed to the full scope of who Whitney Mann is as an artist.
I spoke with Mann about her new album and her approach to music.
OnMilwaukee.com: There is a sultry, yet earthy, quality about your voice. What drew you to sing country over other genres?
Whitney Mann: I grew up in the country (in Michigan) listening to country records and radio stations. I don't sing country music because it best suits my voice. I sing Americana/country music because that's the genre I like listening to the most.
OMC: "The Western Sky" is a bit of a throwback to an older style of country, similar to Ryan Adams' "Jacksonville City Nights," though your project sounds less "old school" Nashville than his. How did you settle on a retro approach versus the more current commercial country sound?
WM: There wasn't that much thought put into this record in terms of strategy or wanting it to "sound" like something specific. I wrote the songs on an acoustic guitar and Kyle was starting to play the double bass. We met Chris Wagoner (fiddle, mandolin) and Mary Gaines (cello) through their podcast, Mad Toast Live, and wanted them to play on the record, too. Anytime you have a room full of acoustic instruments, you're going to get something un-processed. It's not going to have the current "Nashville Country" feel. But nobody likes that feel, anyway. I don't. It was never something we were striving towards. We just wanted to be true to the songs, leaving them as stripped down as possible, and still make something that we would each want to listen to.
OMC: Your new project starts with "Been Thinking A Ways" which is an understated song. So many people like to start off a record with something up-tempo. How did you decide on the sequencing of the album?
WM: When I listen to a record, the most stripped-down song (just a voice and a guitar) always grabs my attention the most. I gravitate towards the most bare/stripped down recordings, so there was never a question in my mind which song should be first. Plus, we recorded a reprise to the song with Mary Gaines, Chris Wagoner and Mark Harrod singing the refrain, and we thought it would be nice to bookend the entire EP with the song.
OMC: What were the writing sessions like for "Western Sky?"
WM: I wrote the songs over the course of two years. I wish I could sit down in a "writing session" and write anything other than garbage. But I can't. I have to wait until something stirs me. And that can take some time.
OMC: You have a new project to support and nice weather around the corner. Have you started filling up your schedule with tour dates and such?
WM: We filled the month of May with shows, and we have a few random dates booked over the summer. Mostly, though, I want to enjoy the Wisconsin sunshine and hit the road on my bike (bicycle).
OMC: What do you hope people take away from this project?
WM: I hope they like the songs as much as I do. I hope they tell their friends about it and then their friends like it as much as I do. And I hope they feel something when they listen to it.
Born in Milwaukee and raised in the Milwaukee suburb of Brown Deer, Concordia University Wisconsin alumnus Poppe has spent the majority of his life in or around the city and county of Milwaukee.
As an advocate of Milwaukee's hip-hop community Poppe began popular local music blog Milwaukee UP in March 2010. Check out the archived entries here.
Though heavy on the hip-hop, Poppe writes about other genres of music and occasionally about food, culture or sports, and is always ready to show his pride in Milwaukee and Wisconsin.
