Do you ever wake up feeling blue? Maybe you’ve had a beautiful dream about someone lost to you, and the longing to be near them lingers. The subtle sadness brought about by our dream selves sparks Karyn Ann’s performance at The Rye Room. It is spellbinding.
She has a quiet power that will take you to a different time and place. Her vocal tone is melodic and pure, and you are transported. Somewhere the noise of the outside blurs. Someplace the world is a little softer and safer. A picture filtered through the film of an old camera. It’s no wonder the self-described neo soul troubadour says “sometimes I feel like I was born in the wrong decade.”
Perhaps, but this decade also needs performances like this.
Karyn Ann invites the listener to slow down and reflect. In an almost meditative three minutes, you’ll find yourself in a dreamlike state akin to that brought on by songs like Joni Mitchell’s “River.” Colin Hogan (of The Colin Trio) on melodica creates a kind of enchantment so strong you might miss the melancholy of the lyrics on first listen.
“‘My Dreams’ was a song I wrote to question the purpose and causes of dreams,” Karyn Ann writes. “As I often have dreams that don't make sense... [I] wanted to play around with idea: ‘I'm sleeping, so why isn't my mind at rest?’ The whole idea that we can subconsciously experience stress fascinates me.”
Karyn Ann’s ability to recreate the experience of that idea through her performance makes it memorable in a way that will compel you to hit repeat. The instrumentation creates the dreamlike state, while the lyrics describe the unease of stress or sadness. The song created through this juxtaposition is simply brilliant.
Does it remind you of a dream? Tell us about it.
