NEW ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Carrie Zaruba
By Bob Doerschuk
© 2013 CMA Close Up® News Service
/ Country Music Association®, Inc.
What made Carrie Zaruba so tough, so
able to express her feelings in song? Maybe it comes from always being the last
kid when your class had to line up in alphabetical order? Whatever it was, she
is rising into the Country Music sky, bright, fast and impossible to ignore.
Her debut album, Woman on a Mission, announces her arrival with crunchy
power guitar, sizzling Country fiddle and lyrics that bounce between heartbreak
and fist-pumping pride. Released on Go Time Records, produced by Kent Wells, who
also co-wrote all six tracks with Zaruba, it showcases the Baltimore native’s
ability to blend these disparate elements in a single song — even a single line
— and make it completely believable.
Only part of this stems from the
chops she cultivated as a jazz and opera vocal student at Philadelphia’s University
of the Arts. She was molded more profoundly by her subsequent move to Nashville,
the bar gigs she fronted and the writing skills she developed through working with Wells.
On ballads, Zaruba addresses a theme of hiding her sadness while putting on
a brave front. When she assures us that she’ll be OK, in “Little Lies,”
you feel the pain behind her bravado as well as the resolution that will in fact
get her “out the door and on my way.” And all doubt is gone on the up-tempo
rockers; the hip “tick, tick … boom” hook on the bridge in “Time Bomb”
makes you want to run – straight to the dance floor..
IN HER OWN WORDS
MUSICAL HERO
“Van Morrison. Astral Weeks
is one of the most important and inspiring records of all time. I was lucky enough
to see him perform it live. His musicality and writing abilities are legendary
and his music has undoubtedly shaped my life.”
SONG YOU’D LOVE TO COVER
“’Run to the Hills,’ by Iron Maiden.”
BOOK ON YOUR NIGHTSTAND
“Currently, The Ballad of Bob Dylan, by Daniel Mark Epstein (Dylan
is another musical hero of mine).”
WORD YOU SAY OVER AND OVER AGAIN
“Gnarly. I call everything gnarly.”
FAVORITE MODE OF TRANSPORTATION
“I love riding on trains. They rock me to sleep. And I like writing on a train – the scenery inspires me.”
GREATEST PERFORMANCE TO DATE
“In college, I was the
lead in the opera Trouble in Tahiti, by Leonard Bernstein, and sang 10
two-hour performances in five days. It was the most challenging and exhilarating
time for me. Before that, I never thought I could be a lead in anything, much less opera. It was incredible!”
FAVORITE FOOD ON THE ROAD
“French fries! Even when
they’re not that good, they’re great!”
LUCKY CHARM
“A rosary blessed by Pope John Paul II.”
SOMETHING WE’D NEVER GUESS ABOUT YOU
“I love art and photography. I’m a huge fan of Frida Kahlo and recently
discovered Francesca Woodman – and I am obsessed.”
On the Web:
www.Facebook.com/CarrieZarubaOfficial
On Twitter: @Carrie_Zaruba