Cait Brennan

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Cait Brennan
Also known as M. C. Brennan
Born (1969-02-14) 14 February 1969 (age 55)
Phoenix, Arizona
Genres Indie pop,
rock,
alternative country,
singer-songwriter
power pop
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, screenwriter, musician
Instruments vocals, piano, guitar, bass
Years active 2010–present
Website http://planetcait.com/

Wendilyn Marielle Caitlin Brennan (born February 14, 1969), better known by her stage name Cait Brennan, is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, guitarist and screenwriter. Brennan's musical style contains elements of piano-driven rock, alternative country, glam rock, Indie pop and power pop.[1] Her music and film work has been praised and earned her a cult following.[2][3][4][5] Her debut album, Debutante, will be released January 22, 2016.[6][7][8][9][10]

Biography

Brennan was born in Phoenix, Arizona, the daughter of Linda Parker and musician Ron Dobbins.[1][11] Brennan was raised by her great-grandmother, a Thoroughbred horse racing seamstress, and grew up traveling across America and in the United Kingdom, an experience she credits for her eclectic musical influences.[12] She began her performance career while beginning a gender transition in her teens; In 2009, reflecting on her 90s work, Curve (magazine) declared that Brennan "almost became the first great transgender rock star."[4] Brennan was interviewed by Against Me! frontwoman Laura Jane Grace in episode 3 of Grace's AOL Originals series "True Trans".[13][14]

Music

Brennan's soulful, androgynous countertenor voice has been compared to Harry Nilsson, Etta James, John Lennon and Iris DeMent. While her lead vocals generally hover in the mid-tenor, Brennan has a five-octave range and sings all the background harmonies on her albums.[1] Matt Keeley of Unicorn Booty dubbed her "Lady Nilsson" for her frequent homages to the late singer-songwriter.[14] Brennan's music combines melodic indie, soul, power pop and 1970s Glam Rock sensibilities with dense vocal harmonies and lyrics that occasionally draw on Vaudeville and Music hall themes.[15] David Bash of International Pop Overthrow described her as "a singer songwriter with a unique brand of glitter glam soulful rock n’ roll sung straight from the heart. Plus, you gotta love anyone who can channel Roy Orbison, Elton John, Freddie Mercury, John Lennon, and Etta James in the space of a single set."[2] Many of her lyrics also invoke historical, literary and mythological figures and themes.[15][16] She has cited influences such as Harry Nilsson, Iris DeMent, Bert Jansch, Merle Haggard, Big Star and Sparks as influences.[17]

Dubbed a "smart, melodic singer-songwriter" by Serene Dominic of Village Voice Media,[18] Brennan was featured on the KAET/Tempe Center for the Arts public television concert series "Songwriters Showcase" which premiered on PBS stations in fall 2013.[19][20] The Arizona Republic named her one of "15 Artists To See" and praised the "cinematic sweep" of her songs.[21][22] Java Magazine's Mitchell Hillman echoed that praise, calling Brennan "a great musician and a formidable writer,"[23] and author Neil Gaiman praised her cover version of David Bowie's Five Years as "glorious".[3][24]

Debutante

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Main article: Debutante (album)

Her debut album, Debutante, was co-produced by Brennan and Fernando Perdomo, a producer and rock artist who also co-produced Linda Perhacs' widely acclaimed 2014 album The Soul of All Natural Things for Sufjan Stevens' Asthmatic Kitty records.[25] Perdomo and Brennan met as fellow artists on the International Pop Overthrow festival in 2012, and quickly became friends; Brennan appears in Perdomo's "Smile" music video,[26] and Perdomo has played in Brennan's touring band.[27]

The album was recorded in five days.[28] Brennan funded the initial production of the album through Kickstarter and exceeded her funding goal in just 69 hours.[29] During the campaign, Brennan received support from Laura Jane Grace, Neil Gaiman, and John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats.[30] The album has already received positive reviews; Writer Todd Alcott described it as "harkening to the days when pop music albums were created to get lost in, with lush harmonies and intricate multi-layered arrangements, Debutante has its roots in English pop, roughly the decade between Penny Lane and This Year's Model, taking in Diamond Dogs and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" and stuffing in healthy chunks of Aztec Camera as well, with lyrics that are simultaneously deeply personal and broadly universal. The fact that it was recorded in the space of time usually set aside for fine-tuning a snare-drum sound makes her achievement all the more remarkable."[28] Longtime music industry executive Marc Nathan, who helped spearhead bands such as Barenaked Ladies, raved that Debutante "may become a life-changing experience for someone out there" and that "Cait is someone who deserves to be brought to the forefront with this album. I've heard it, I've lived in it, I've loved it. It fits."[31]

Jinx

Brennan and Perdomo are already working on the followup to Debutante; Jinx will be recorded in early 2016 for release at the end of the year.[10] The title is a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Sophomore slump), will be recorded in early 2016 for release at the end of the year.[10] Several demos have already been released on Brennan's YouTube page.[14][32]

A compilation album containing early work, The Unfortunate Compiler, named for an Edward Dwelly quote given to Brennan by Angus Peter Campbell, is slated for 2017.[33]

Writing and Film

Brennan co-wrote the screenplay for the romantic comedy "Love Or Whatever",[34] directed by Rosser Goodman, which made its world premiere at the 2012 Frameline Film Festival.[35] She also appears in the film.[34][36] Bay Area critic George Heymont praised the film as "a rowdy romp" and "that rare gem: a sexy and intelligent gay romantic comedy."[37][38] TLA Releasing released the film in Fall 2014.[39] While in college, Brennan received the Arizona Commission on the Arts Screenwriting fellowship in 2002,[40] and the following year, she won the Phoenix Film Festival's Best Screenplay award for "The People's Choice".[41][42] Brennan was honored with the Outfest Screenwriting Lab Fellowship in 2007 for her comic homage to 1980s John Hughes films, "Dramatis Personae".[43][44] In October 2007, the Rhode Island International Film Festival awarded first prize to Brennan and "Dramatis Personae" in their annual screenwriting honors.[45] In 2014, Brennan co-wrote (along with writer Doug Bost) the Alzheimer's-focused short "Policy Of Truth", directed by Nick Demos.[46]

In 2010 she joined the staff of Phoenix's LGBT-focused Echo Magazine.[34][47] and is currently the magazine's music critic. Brennan is also a contributing writer at the pop-culture web magazine Popshifter.[48]

Personal life

Brennan is bisexual.[49][50] She has credited Buddhism as an influence on her life and work.[50]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  40. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  48. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  49. ↑ List of bisexual people (A–F)
  50. ↑ 50.0 50.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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