THE SCENE/hear
by Matt Loi
The past
ten years have been a wild ride for Kori Ailene. A decade ago she performed regularly in Spokane at Rock Coffee and Caterina Winery. Her songs conveyed a more passive character in those days. Then she made the move to Hawaii and gave up music for years. But she returned to Spokane and is now making a huge comeback with a full-length album. Through her job at Left Bank Wine Bar, Ailene got to know the musicians who perform there, including Jay Condiotti, Lucas Brown, and Nick Grow. The challenges she faced over the past few years provided fuel for songwriting, and she was looking to collaborate. Thanks to her persistence, she was the first artist booked in Condiotti’s J Bones Studio earlier this year. Grow fleshed out the arrangements and added some vocal harmonies and additional guitar, while Brown laid down some tasteful lead guitar lines. Condiotti opted for a minimalist production style, free of gimmicks and unnecessary processing. He placed mics at a distance from Ailene in his cavernous studio space to capture a natural live ambience. The result is a true-to-life representation of Ailene and her friends through a 10-song collection called Bear With Me. Ailene’s earnest voice draws inspiration from timeless American singer-songwriters and carries a tinge of classic country. But she is a songwriter, primarily. And her style changed drastically from what it was a decade ago. Now she writes about fighting through her darkest hours and slaying her demons, rather than being a victim. No longer hiding in metaphors and clichés, she takes a strikingly literal approach to the subject matter. Her new-found assertive style was born out of rediscovering herself after a divorce, as well as her stepping away from religion. Now she knows exactly what she wants and isn’t afraid to go get it.
Kori Ailene April Egly Photography
You can see Kori Ailene (pronounced “a-lean”) perform at her Bear With Me album release concert at The Bartlett in downtown Spokane on Friday, May 19 at 8 p.m., with opening acts Liz Rognes and Mark Ward. Ailene also plays the Iron Horse in Spokane Valley on Sunday, May 14 and No-Li Brewhouse in Spokane on Wednesday, May 24. Rumor has it she will also perform at the Volume Music Festival in Spokane in early June with Lucas Brown. Get more info at KoriAilene.com, or on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Get your digital version of Bear With Me via iTunes, Spotify, or BandCamp.
MAY 2017 / spokanecda.com
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