New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Internationally acclaimed chanteuse
Nicole Atkins will celebrate this week's arrival of her eagerly anticipated new album with an intimate one-night-only livestream Moment. Presented by premium digital live platform Moment House, MEMPHIS ICE: A LIVESTREAM MOMENT will air worldwide this Friday, December 10 at 9pm (EST). Replays will be available for only 24 hours following the event.
This week's livestream Moment heralds the release of Atkins' milestone new album and full-length performance film, MEMPHIS ICE, arriving via Single Lock Records on limited-edition vinyl and at all DSPs and streaming services on Friday, December 10; pre-orders are available now. A reimagined companion project to last year's acclaimed ITALIAN ICE, the live recording includes such recently released tracks as "Promised Land" and "Mind Eraser," both of which are joined by official music videos taken from the performance film and streaming now via YouTube.
Hailed by UNCUT as "clear-eyed, warm, and stylish," ITALIAN ICE was among the best albums of 2020, its warmth, vivid color, and a tilt-a-whirl variety of musical grooves providing much-needed positivity in what proved a very difficult year. Unable to tour behind the album's release, Atkins began hosting a variety show from her attic. "Live From The Steel Porch with
Nicole Atkins" soon received support from Amazon Music, with new episodes shot at Asbury Park, NJ's famed Paramount Theater with such special guests as
Kurt Vile and the Dean Ween Group.
The back-to-basics performances inspired Atkins to explore new and previously untapped flavors in her vocals and songcraft. Backed by an ace trio of Dan Chen (piano),
Laura Epling (violin), and Maggie Chaffee (cello), Atkins recorded MEMPHIS ICE live in one day at
Memphis Magnetic studio, simultaneously filming the performance with painterly shadow and light. The stripped-down, smoky style of both brings all-new emotional vistas to fan-favorite songs like "Domino," "Captain," and "Forever," while opening the door even wider to where Atkins would like to go next as a singer.
"I always thought about my
Judy Garland or Liza Minnelli moment coming later in life," she says. "But after we finished that day of recording, I had so much fun just singing and was so in the moment, I thought, 'I want to do that sooner, I want to do that for my next record.' I want to make a record of standards that are new if that's possible. Songs that make you feel like you're singing 'Stardust,' but you're not. I kept thinking that on my first record, NEPTUNE CITY, the songs felt old, but they were new. Why can't there be new songs that feel like the old standards?"
Indeed, that committed spirit of timeless songcraft has already earned MEMPHIS ICE praise from avowed Atkins fan Elvis Costello.
"Songs don't stop living when the red light goes out," says Costello." "Pulling the colors and curtains from the studio versions of these songs, you find yourself within melodies and their emotions. Borne up by some beautiful playing from the small ensemble, this is some serious singing."
