At the end of the day, Oakland-based Madeline Kenney just wants to be surprised. An artist witha rare openness to exploration and an appetite for the novel, her pursuit of music wasn’t alwaysa foregone conclusion, though she’s played piano her whole life. Hers is a path peppered withdiversions, in the sense that she lets herself be amused. She’s studied neuroscience, been adancer, a baker, a visual artist, and yes, a musician, but even that role comes with nearly toomany hyphenates to count. But rather than existing as offshoot paths, her many selves arealways entangled, encouraging one another. All of it shows up in the songs.To chart the trajectory of her career from the release of her critically-acclaimed debut albumNight Night at The First Landingin 2017 to her now fourthstudio release,A New Reality Mind, isto witness a simultaneous evolution and unfurling—her creative precision curing as her musicalpalette becomes evermore unrestricted and prismatic, stretching to contain the curiosity of herroving mind.This voraciousness shows up everywhere in her work, from the layered sonic tensions in hermusic, to the seemingly endless roster of musicians she’s collaborated with. Since releasingNight Night(which was co-produced with Chaz Bear of Toro y Moi), she’s shared musicnearannually, including albumsPerfect Shapes(2018) andSucker’s Lunch(2020), which were bothco-produced with Jenn Wasner (Wye Oak / Flock of Dimes), with whom Kenney also releasedsplit EPThe Sisters / Helpless(2019).Sucker’s Lunchalso featured acameo from KurtWagner, of the perennial cult-favorite Lambchop. Meanwhile, Kenney also finds time tocollaborate beyond her own project—she’s lent vocals to multiple Toro y Moi projects, co-produced records with artists such as A.O. Gerber, and directedmusic videos for Hand Habits,Boy Scouts, and Olivia Kaplan.Her newest release sees Kenney at the height of her personal creative power. Produced andrecorded alone in her basement, the songs onA New Reality Mindpulse with the vibrance of afiercely inquisitive mind. They’re the result of Kenney’s penchant for wonder and an invitation tolook at the world through her continually-searching lens.
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Doors: 6:00pm
Show: 7:00pm
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