Courtney Marie Andrews joined us at Chelsea Studios NYC to share three songs from her new album Valentine (ND's album review here), along with album co-producer and guitarist Jerry Bernhardt. Her recent trip to NYC was packed with a variety of artistic expressions, including the unveiling of the new album, Andrews' paintings on display at The National Arts Club, and poetry readings from her new book Love Is a Dog That Bites When It's Scared.
Andrews opened her No Depression Session with "Cons and Clowns," the first line of which got me thinking about the musical relationship between Andrews and Bernhardt, and the musical relationship between the members of any band: "Don't make yourself small, baby, take up space." You deserve to be here. Whether we think of taking up space on an emotional level, social level, or physical level, we know that taking the right amount of space for ourselves is the healthy way forward, and that the "right" amount of space changes constantly. Take too little space and risk losing agency, take too much and suck the air out of the room, leaving nothing for anybody else. The interplay between Andrews and Bernhardt is a master class in finding the right balance in one space shared between two musicians.
Andrews described her mindset as "very intense" during the writing of Valentine, as she juggled the caretaking of a loved one in crisis, and the beginning of a new romantic relationship. Says Andrews, "It was everything all at once. A lot of life was lived while writing these songs." The songs are gorgeous in this stripped down duo setting, and the studio album versions of the songs rule.
Setlist:
"Cons and Clowns"
"Best Friend"
“Only The Best For Baby”
Courtney Marie Andrews - Vocals, guitar
Jerry Bernhardt - Guitar, vocals
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