Since my dear sister can't seem to find the time to write her own myspace bio, I, her brother James, have volunteered to write one for her. I suspect that she might tend to underestimate/underplay her talents, anyway, being the humble sort that she is. So this is an opportunity for me to toot her horn for her, and she can remain modestly on the sidelines while the important things about her that need to be said are said.
The main thing to know about April, besides the fact that she is a lovely and kind person, is this: she is spectacularly gifted in music. She is, simply, the best singer I have known. She's a first rate performer, too, who can put across an emotional lyric like nobody's business. It also doesn't hurt matters to note that she's quite pretty to look at and has a flair for the comic aside. Her talent has led her to some impressive accomplishments: her old band Arson Garden made three internationally-acclaimed albums. The group was named "the only art rock band in America that matters" by the Chicago Reader (and received rave reviews from hundreds of other publications).
Her music video has been aired on MTV. She has recorded a Peel Session for the BBC in London. She has performed at the Lollapalooza Festival. She has made albums in Prince's Paisley Park Studio, Pachyderm (Nirvana, PJ Harvey), and Creation (the Replacements, Soul Assylum, Husker Du). She was a signed recording artist with one of the biggest independent labels in the country. She has toured extensively in the US and Europe, knocking out crowds from Seattle to Amsterdam. She has performed on bills with artists as diverse as The Afghan Whigs, Marianne Faithful, They Might Be Giants, The Replacements, Shawn Colvin, Poi Dog Pondering, The Walkabouts... and many others.
She is also writing songs like crazy right now, which have been arriving as demos in my email box almost every week. I gotta tell ya: her new songs are great = and I suspect they'll be showing up on this very website soon. So come back and visit often - and see what April is up to. I think you'll be excited by what you find. And, if you live in Cincinnati, you'll be happy to know that you can hear April performing live very soon!
James Combs, March 2007.