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Myshkin, named by FolkRoots Magazine UK “one of the best songwriters around,” is most known for her rich alto, odd melodies and vividly storied lyrics. Her writing is built of subtle wit and thorny truths; she tackles themes of work and love, war and justice, prison and escape, in a style that draws on a world of influences—from gypsy to punk to jazz. She lets her songs fly on an intoxicating powerhouse voice that travels straight to your hidden places. The haunting intensity of the music finds balance in the dark humor of her songs.
Myshkin was raised in the Midwestern U.S. in a music-obsessed immigrant family. She studied theater, taught herself guitar, worked as a taxi driver, painter, roofer, baker and parade float maker, and traveled the States and Europe before landing in Louisiana. During a decade in New Orleans, Myshkin gathered chops and inspiration and toured tirelessly on three continents, performing on average 300 nights a year. She played major music festivals from Vancouver to Melbourne, toured Europe annually and released five records of solely her material, and three collaborative records. She recorded with dozens of artists, was involved in a variety of local and regional projects, and was a founding force behind a resurgent acoustic scene in the crescent city.
In 2001 she formed Myshkin‘s Ruby Warblers and in 2003 the band left the south for the west coast. In wet, literate Portland, Oregon they are finding fertile ground for their continuing musical evolution. In the last 2 years they have completed 2 national and 3 European tours. The band tours as a duo—Myshkin on guitar and tenor guitar, Sailor Banks on fretless bass—or a trio, adding either Scott Magee or Leila Chieko on drums. Myshkin and Scott have been working together since 1998, his approach is precise, melodic and experimental. Leila, a fixture on the Portland music scene, has just begun working with the Warblers, bringing her own lyrical drumming style to the band. Myshkin met Sailor soon after moving to Portland and they immediately began making recordings together. Sailor joined the band as bassist in 2004, she is a multi instrumentalist and electronic musician with an elegant sensibility, who records her own music as Sugar Shortwave. She produced Corvidae, the latest Warblers record. Together, they make a remarkable rare bird.
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