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Katell Keineg was born in Brittany and was brought up both there and
in Wales. In the mid-nineties, after a spell in Ireland, she went to
live in New York and was quickly embraced by the buzzing cafe scene
around St Mark's Place's Sin-e. In 1993, while building her reputation
for "conveying a nearly beatific sense of joy in performance" (Los
Angeles Times), she released a seven-inch single on Bob Mould's SOL
Records label. That same year, Katell sang on Iggy Pop's "American
Caesar" and following his passing of her single on to Elektra, they
signed her and released her first album "O Seasons, O Castles" in
1994. 1997 saw the release of Katell's second album "Jet". Recorded in
Bearsville,"Jet" received rave reviews and led to much touring in the
U.S. and Europe. It was even named one of the "Best Overlooked Pop
Masterpieces Of The Decade" by Esquire. Keineg's live work has
included singing with Jeff Buckley, Allen Ginsberg and Calexico,
opening for many people from Morphine to the Tarafs De Haidouks. In
2002, free from merger-addled Elektra, Katell released an E.P.
entitled "What's The Only Thing Worse Than The End Of Time?" on
Brooklyn based indie, Field Recording Co. The recording included a
live performance of "River Man" from a tribute to Nick Drake held at
St Ann's Church in Brooklyn. In their review of the night, The New
York Times declared her "...a young songwriter due for her own cult, who
travelled the fine edge between rapture and loss so essential to Mr
Drake's art." Following the release of a second E.P. (Shaking The
Disease), Keineg released "High July", her third album, in late 2004
to further enthusiastic reviews. A re-recorded version of "On Yer Way"
from that album was used on the soundtrack of Deborah Kampmeier's
indie film "Virgin" with Robin Wright Penn, also in 2004. Katell was
the subject of a 6-page profile in The New York Times Sunday Magazine
in July 2006 which led to sold out gigs in New York City. Summer 2007
was spent playing European festivals with concert pianist Katia
Labeque's experimental band, B For Bang, whose first album was
released in January 2008. Keineg releases a 4-song E.P. in January
2009 that includes the re-recorded "On Yer Way" and a Welsh language
cover of the Super Furry Animals song "Y Gwyneb Iau". She has just
finished recording her fourth album in New York and recently played at
Levon Helm's Midnight Ramble in Woodstock.
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