Minneapolis, MN. (Top40 Charts/ Patches and Gretchen) - Minneapolis-based singer/songwriter GRETCHEN SEICHRIST is a media darling in her own home town.
Even before its official release 'Sugar Head Pie' - the new CD by her band Patches and Gretchen - has been the focus of attention from the local media.
Already, Jim Walsh in MinnPost.com glowingly called it '...the most hypnotic rock record of the new decade...A timeless album...'
And fellow musician Adam Levy of Honeydogs writes: 'I don't think I'm going out on a ledge by arguing that Patches and Gretchen's 'Sugar Head Pie' is a freak-out folk-punk masterpiece.'
GRETCHEN is no stranger to accolades; the debut Patches and Gretchen album, 'Music From Little Big Pink' was crowned '...one of the best Minnesota albums of 2008' by one music authority, and SEICHRIST herself was named 'Artist of the Year' by another.
A striking amalgam of Patti Smith, Chrissie Hynde, Lou Reed and her idol Bob Dylan, the title of 'the new Dylanette' has been bestowed upon SEICHRIST by her many fans. Her songs provide intimate vignettes of life as a single mother, often emphasized to dramatize a specific feeling or message. Recorded in just four days, 'Sugar Head Pie' has been called a 'masterpiece, a great accomplishment' for the gifted songstress: SEICHRIST co-wrote 'Medicine Wheel' with her sister Aimee Mann; the track was featured on Mann's 2008 CD 'Smilers.'
Paying homage to Dylan in her own style, SEICHRIST champions the downtrodden with lyrics that are brutally honest and speak both to and about adults. Patches and Gretchen fan club president David Wynn describes SEICHRIST as a 'webcam video maker extraordinaire, artist, performer, poet, painter and any damn thing else she chooses, the self-styled sexy songstress...' On the album, SEICHRIST is supported by a cast of seasoned and talented musicians, including Rich Mattson (6 string acoustic guitar), David Loy (12 string acoustic guitar), Al Schroeter (bass), Terry Eason (lead guitar), and Derek Rolando (drums), among others.
In concert, Patches and Gretchen treat the audience to high energy, theatrical presentations that sparkle with an amazing amount of power and force. After a recent performance, one attendee admitted, 'Even from the back row, I couldn't take my eyes off the stage.' Singing her songs of desperation, longing and losing, SEICHRIST admits that 'I see things like a painting, or film.' Her visual imagery takes flight in the guise of her words, and the listener comes away feeling that they have been privy to an intimate look inside the heart and mind of one of today's most talented new musical troubadours.
'Sugar Head Pie' is slated for national release on March 9 (SEICHRIST'S birthday) on Sandpaper Tongue Records. To learn more about the artist, visit www.sugarheadpie.com.
