Having just been told about Sarah RabDAU and Self-Employed Assassins (h/t Becca), based out of Boston (hometown nod), I’m frankly surprised I’m featuring them so quickly on the blog. But the music got me in a heartbeat, what with the enormously catchy piano riffs and a voice with a slight quirk that makes Rabdau stand out from some other artists in the ever-burgeoning female pianist singer/songwriter category. Not to say that quirk is obvious – her vocal timbre is quite astounding.
Reminiscent of Imogen Heap (I know, no small comparison) and Fiona Apple, Rabdau knows how to work her appeal. And the Self-Employed Assassins part (essentially drummer Matt Graber, along with occasional other performers) keeps Rabdau’s rock sensibility intact.
Collectively, the album’s songs seem to depict a 21st century Emily Dickinson, emerging from her seclusion to find herself both exhilarated and terrified to be experiencing life first-hand. Hyperbolic figures are often called upon to illustrate the magnitude of her internal strife—a rejected lover so bitter that she becomes an assassin, or a girlfriend so oppressed that she feels like the imprisoned quadruple amputee in the 1993 film Boxing Helena.
Sarah RabDAU and Self-Employed Assassins – “Jackie” [MP3]
Sarah RabDAU and Self-Employed Assassins – “Autumn Spills” [MP3]
Sarah RabDAU and Self-Employed Assassins – “Riots and Revolutions” [MP3]
Grab a fourth track (along with these three if you so desire) for free download at their website!
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