After receiving industry acclaim in the form of Clear Channel’s “New” program and earning top
honors in the 2006 “Song of the Year” competition, Garage Band sensation Rachel VanSlyke is
the latest artist to leverage internet popularity into a worldwide recording and publishing
contract. VanSlyke’s unique combination of accessible, highly listenable tunes with no holds
barred lyrics and a refusal to be bound by conventional genres have garnered her a following who
are at once enamored and empowered by her bold songwriting and gutsy performances.
Succeeding on her own terms, her songs emotionally resonate with fans across the spectrum based
upon their edgy intensity and genuine intimacy. Refusing to let her brains, heart or voice be
eclipsed by her natural beauty, her head knows she’s got to be cautious in this industry, but “the
heart wants what it wants,” and Rachel’s seems content only when it’s revealing itself.
“Or when I’m hiking or biking or on a retreat…I guess you could say I’m a real nature girl,”
jokes the shy-without-her-guitar Rachel. “When you’re born in a small country town, when you’
re drawn to the spiritual and the natural, when your grandmother was a carpenter who also sang
at Carnegie Hall...I’m what you end up with.”
Raised in Upstate New York on little more than a love of family and music, she first took to the
guitar at age 14. The past decade she’s spent honing her talents by beating the odds and claiming
a newfound comfort in crowds. She also plays piano and a little tenor sax, thanks to her family’s
penchant for all-night jam sessions, but the energetic artist feels compelled to pick up and play
pretty much anything that makes a sound. Of course, the construction worker turned waitress
turned Venice Boardwalk acoustic vagabond has a habit of defying expectations. And “so i begin,”
her first release by TSR Records, is no exception.
Combining elements of rock, pop and classic country, everyone from teens to the adult alternative
crowd are getting off on the unapologetic sensuality of Rachel VanSlyke’s storytelling and her
raw, expressive and explosive talents. From the in-your-face, balls-out modern rock of “Never
Me” to the infectious honky-tonk of “Carry” to the lullaby rhythm of “Into Me,” VanSlyke strips
her songs to their cores. Belting out the staccato lines of “Movin On,” the unvarnished nature of
her lyrics make it so even the imperfections in her untrained voice ring as authentic.
Still reluctant to set up house in anybody else’s camp, the modest twenty-four year-old does
acknowledge and appreciate comparisons made to Sheryl Crow, Suzanne Vega, and Nirvana.
Rock? Sure, just so long as your definition includes ample room for the truthy twangs of Johnny
Cash. Pop? Yes, but when’s the last time hooks like this have been matched with R&B grit –
better put a little more rum in that Coke. Folk? Of course, the influence is there, but are you
sure Folk is supposed to stomp? This ain’t your Momma’s Mamas. And there’s nothing the
playful soul likes better than surprising fans by following up one song – just when they think
they’ve got her pegged – with something completely different.
Whether playing to packed clubs or back at Venice Beach, even one- on-one for a stranger, giving
herself over to the music and her audience, and baring it all are what, according to Rachel, she’s
here to do. Judiciously produced by Get Set Go’s Mike TV, “so i begin” is how Rachel VanSlyke
offers herself to the world, and, judging by audience reaction and her meteoric Garage Band
ascent, that’s exactly what today’s jaded, overly- marketed-to music fans respect.
BY: SCOTT SILVERMAN
honors in the 2006 “Song of the Year” competition, Garage Band sensation Rachel VanSlyke is
the latest artist to leverage internet popularity into a worldwide recording and publishing
contract. VanSlyke’s unique combination of accessible, highly listenable tunes with no holds
barred lyrics and a refusal to be bound by conventional genres have garnered her a following who
are at once enamored and empowered by her bold songwriting and gutsy performances.
Succeeding on her own terms, her songs emotionally resonate with fans across the spectrum based
upon their edgy intensity and genuine intimacy. Refusing to let her brains, heart or voice be
eclipsed by her natural beauty, her head knows she’s got to be cautious in this industry, but “the
heart wants what it wants,” and Rachel’s seems content only when it’s revealing itself.
“Or when I’m hiking or biking or on a retreat…I guess you could say I’m a real nature girl,”
jokes the shy-without-her-guitar Rachel. “When you’re born in a small country town, when you’
re drawn to the spiritual and the natural, when your grandmother was a carpenter who also sang
at Carnegie Hall...I’m what you end up with.”
Raised in Upstate New York on little more than a love of family and music, she first took to the
guitar at age 14. The past decade she’s spent honing her talents by beating the odds and claiming
a newfound comfort in crowds. She also plays piano and a little tenor sax, thanks to her family’s
penchant for all-night jam sessions, but the energetic artist feels compelled to pick up and play
pretty much anything that makes a sound. Of course, the construction worker turned waitress
turned Venice Boardwalk acoustic vagabond has a habit of defying expectations. And “so i begin,”
her first release by TSR Records, is no exception.
Combining elements of rock, pop and classic country, everyone from teens to the adult alternative
crowd are getting off on the unapologetic sensuality of Rachel VanSlyke’s storytelling and her
raw, expressive and explosive talents. From the in-your-face, balls-out modern rock of “Never
Me” to the infectious honky-tonk of “Carry” to the lullaby rhythm of “Into Me,” VanSlyke strips
her songs to their cores. Belting out the staccato lines of “Movin On,” the unvarnished nature of
her lyrics make it so even the imperfections in her untrained voice ring as authentic.
Still reluctant to set up house in anybody else’s camp, the modest twenty-four year-old does
acknowledge and appreciate comparisons made to Sheryl Crow, Suzanne Vega, and Nirvana.
Rock? Sure, just so long as your definition includes ample room for the truthy twangs of Johnny
Cash. Pop? Yes, but when’s the last time hooks like this have been matched with R&B grit –
better put a little more rum in that Coke. Folk? Of course, the influence is there, but are you
sure Folk is supposed to stomp? This ain’t your Momma’s Mamas. And there’s nothing the
playful soul likes better than surprising fans by following up one song – just when they think
they’ve got her pegged – with something completely different.
Whether playing to packed clubs or back at Venice Beach, even one- on-one for a stranger, giving
herself over to the music and her audience, and baring it all are what, according to Rachel, she’s
here to do. Judiciously produced by Get Set Go’s Mike TV, “so i begin” is how Rachel VanSlyke
offers herself to the world, and, judging by audience reaction and her meteoric Garage Band
ascent, that’s exactly what today’s jaded, overly- marketed-to music fans respect.
BY: SCOTT SILVERMAN
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