Emm Gryner - Public 1998

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Canadian charmer Emm Gryner doesn't waste a lot of creative energy on overtly adult issues. The sunshiney flagship single "Summerlong" is a good litmus test: the jingle-jangler bounces along on a frothy rhythm as it relates the mildly sorrowful tale of a July romance that falls by the wayside like so many October leaves. And, track after track, this starry-eyed lass uses her piano and gently emotive voice to wring more and more drama from her affairs of the heart--until finally, limp as a dishrag, her love spent, she's reduced to believing that "Death Is a New Day." Despite the Canadian connection, Gryner is no brassy Alanis, no madrigal-matronly McLachlan. Her outlook is youthful, ultimately optimistic, and--thanks to a confessional songwriting style that's as personal as a diary--altogether heartwarming and humane. The kid's got chops.

- Amazon.com

Public is a promising adult alternative pop-rock debut from Emm Gryner. She tries all sorts of musical styles on the record. Some work splendidly, others fall a little flat, but throughout it all, she demonstrates considerable melodic skills and lyrical acumen, which is what makes Public an exciting debut.

- allmusicguide

On Public her debut album for Mercury Records, Emm Gryner writes, sings, and plays with a passion molded by musicianship and guided by an unusual, original muse. Lyrically, Emm Gryner has more than a way with words, she has her way with words.
In a rural Canadian town, Emm grew up with classical piano lessons and a handful of Detroit radio stations that made their way over the border. She wrote her first song when she was 10, and formed a band with her two older brothers shortly after. Her brothers lay claim to the keyboard and guitar, leaving Emm to take up the bass for the first time. Bass turned out to be a perfect fit. Emm loved the low, resonant magic of the bass, and found a freedom that she hadn't felt on piano. Cover bands followed, with rusty versions of Nirvana and Pearl Jam, and then she learned to record her own songs at home on a 4 track.

"At twenty, I moved to Toronto and a year later formed my own indie label called Dead Daisy Records," she recalls. "I released an album of my own work, an EP of cover songs (The Clash, Paul Weller) and another EP, The Sodium Rainbow, featuring 3 other unsigned Toronto songwriters. To survive, I took day jobs in offices so that at night and on weekends, I could play in clubs and promote my records."

For two years, Emm studied recording and production. She produced the records on her Dead Daisy label and worked closely with producer Warne Livesey (Midnight Oil, The The, Julian Cope) on Public. After Emm recorded all the bass and piano parts, and some guitar, she went on to play instruments she had never touched before, like the Hammond Organ, Mellotron, Wurlitzer, Harmonium and synthesizer. "Public features songs I wrote to heal myself," Emm explains, "such as "This Mad" and "Acid". I also wrote songs as celebrations of other people's lives like "Hello Aquarius" and "The Good You Make", as well as songs that confront feeling alone and growing up: Some songs are born as a result of my strangling disability to say exactly what I feel in conversation. Other songs are diary entries. Some songs are pleas. Others are apologies."

"Summerlong" is about letting go of one of the most important friendships of my life," she continues. "Wisdom Bus" is a song about wishing I knew all of the mysteries of the world. "The End" is sort of a very moody, organic kind of naked song and for that we pulled out this Harmonium that Warne had in his garage and when I played it, it was perfect."

Although Emm recorded much of Public on her own, she invited drummer Chris Whitten (Paul McCartney, The Waterboys, cellist Caroline Lavelle (Peter Gabriel, Massive Attack, Ra diohead), and strings from the London Session Orchestra ("What's The Story" by Oasis and "Different Class" by Pulp) to contribute their considerable talents to the album.

-Nettwerk bio


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Artist: Emm Gryner
Album: Public
Date Of Release: 1998
Genre: AlternaPop, IndiePop
Bitrate: VBR --alt-preset extreme