Cassendre Xavier Music

THIS JUST IN! NEW CD/MP3 "CAPABLE OF LOVE", FIRST STUDIO ALBUM IN 5 YEARS! PRICED FOR TODAY'S ECONOMY AND AVAILABLE AT HTTP://STORES.LULU.COM/CASSENDRE---------------------------- -------------------------------------BOOKING INQUIRIES (VENUES, HOUSE CONCERTS, ETC) PLEASE CONTACT: [email protected] IN PROGRESS. PLEASE HELP FUNDRAISE STUDIO COSTS! Hi, there. As you may know, under my name "Amethyste Rah", I released 2 spoken word guided meditation recordings in August 2007 (available at www.lulu.com/cassEndrE. One is called "Affirmations for Survivors: Self-Love" and the other "Affirmations for Survivors: Spirituality". In February 2009, I began writing the material for the final 2 of the Series "Affirmations for Survivors: Sexuality" and "Affirmations for Survivors: Life Skills". I hope to go into the studio this spring to record these for release in summer 2009, and from here on out record only guided meditation albums focusing on abundance and positivity. Please support the project of these last two albums by making a financial contribution as you are able. Every cent will go directly to the production of these albums. Thank you so much and here comes the cutest little Paypal button you ever did see :-) --------- On December, 26, 2007, Philadelphia City Paper music critic M.J. Fine honorably mentioned Cassendre's CD, "Live at Tin Angel", as 9 of "Top 21 Local LPs of 2007"! See blog for details.] -----------------------------------------Cassendre Xavier (a.k.a. Amethyste Rah) is an acclaimed singer-songwriter, guitarist, and recording artist described as "a cross between Tracy Chapman, Sade, and Enya" (Steven M. Wilson, Borders Books & Music). ----------------------------"Her stage presence is one part sex kitten serenading in heels, two parts powerhouse kickass feminist troubadour poet. In concert with Cassendre Xavier, there is never a dull moment." (Debra D'Alessandro/Producer & Host of Amazon Country, WXPN 88.5). ------------------------------------------- "Cassendre Xavier has combined an unlikely mixture of contemporary and timeless influences to create a smooth yet distinguishable style beyond the usual singer songwriter pattern. It is hard to tell where her jazz, folk and rock influences inform her sensibility, yet informed by all of these she is. It is as consistent as it is memorable, soulful, and real." -David W. Wannop/Journalist and Concert Promoter------------------------------ Heather Corcoran of CoffeeHouse Tour says, "[Xavier] captivates the listener with her angelic voice, smoothed over with powerful lyrics and the affair she holds with her guitar."-------------------------- Xavier's songs span the range of the pop genre from folk to blues to rock. Her studio albums showcase her rich, sweet singing voice and inspired, impressive guitar picking, plucking, or strumming. Live recordings boast a particular gift for entertaining audiences with jokes and witty banter. She has also released guided meditation spoken word CDs and downloads under her self-assigned soul-name Amethyste Rah. These recordings featuring the beautiful, angelic music of Thaddeus (used with permission), and are currently available at http://stores.lulu.com/cassendre -----------------------A self-described "renaissance negresse", Cassendre is also an actress, a multi-genre published writer, and a former community cultural arts advocate. She is founder of Philadelphia's annual Black Women's Arts Festival (est. 2003), which is now directed by cellist/vocalist Monica McIntyre. Cassendre won the 2005 Leeway Transformation Award for her work in art and change. On December 31, 2007, Cassendre returned to her birth city of New York to begin putting her 16 years of independent artistry and recording towards the new goal of being a signed artist. ------Visit www.cassendrexavier.com for complete biographical information.------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ -----[CAPABLE OF LOVE - 8th Album/2009] Cassendre Xavier just can’t make up her mind. If it isn’t love songs, it’s inspirational songs, or it’s songs just to make us laugh. The one thing this acoustic pop artist described as “a cross between Tracy Chapman, Sade, and Enya” (Steven M. Wilson, Borders Music Expert) does consistently is soothe, entertain, and inspire. Her voice is as light and sweet as it is deep and sultry. She can joke and cajole as well as comfort and uplift. Nowhere is all of this variety more expressed than in her latest effort, “Capable of Love” (released January 11, 2009). All but two tracks are new original songs – check out her haunting “Water is Wide” and uniquely peppy yet fervent “O Shenandoah”. And all but one, an emotional “Wanna Heal”, which features her hip-hop producer brother Giscard “Jee Eye Zee” Xavier (City High and C Knowledge of the Diggable Planets) on drums, features only Xavier’s multi-layered vocals and her own acoustic rhythm and lead playing. Humor is here in abundance, as “The Damn Dog Song” shows. A plea for owners to leave their pups at home when dining out or shopping for take-home movies, this song alone is worth the price of the CD/download. Xavier wanted to honor her self-described “Sapphically-inclined constituents” with a tune – that’s where “The Chapstick Lesbian Song” comes in. The song claims to speak to those who identify as neither “butch” nor “femme” but is sure to bring smiles to anyone regardless of gender or orientation. In addition to the soul-stirring, political anthem “I Am Free”, the motivational “Reach”, the unabashedly joyful “You Make Me Happy” and the aforementioned survivor’s theme “Wanna Heal”, all other songs on “Capable” are rich in her soulful expression of emotions. The usual angst around relationships and romance abound, but are enhanced by multi-layered, bell-like harmonic chanting not unlike Bobby McFerrin, and reminiscent of jazz composer/pianist/vocalist Tania Maria. When asked why some of the songs are so long (“Run to You”, for example, runs almost 10 minutes alone), Xavier says, “This album is for people who like to sing along. I often find that the end of a song is the most fun sometimes, and I am often disappointed when it ends. And I love to harmonize. I have always done a lot of harmonizing when I sing. To me, these are sacred chants, and I hope there are people out there who will enjoy singing and harmonizing along. If not, well, I figure you can always skip ahead to the next track!” Indeed, the lengthiness may not be for everyone, but at 10 songs totaling a little over an hour of her lovely music, most will be pleased and satisfied. Recommended.---------------------