Susan Robkin

Country of origin:

U.S.

Type of music generally:

Mainstream rock

Status:

Most recent release, Surfacing to Breathe (2004)

See also:

CDBaby's Susan Robkin page

Comparisons:

Sheryl Crow, Melissa Ethridge, Alanis Morissette (but no country, bluesy, or alterna-rock tinges like them).

Covers/own material:

Own

General comments:

Straight-forward melodic rock, rich powerful voice, good singer; songs about relationships. (k_hester_k@yahoo.co.nz)

Recommended first album:

how to say goodbye is the first we've heard

Recordings:

• how to say goodbye (2001)
• Horse of a Different Color EP (1999)
• Surfacing to Breathe (2004)

how to say goodbye

Release info:

2001—SoNoS Records

Availability:

See CDBaby's Susan Robkin page

Ecto priority:

Recommended for people who want to support new rock artists.

Group members:

Susan Robkin—vocals, backing vocals, percussion

Guest artists:

Chris Martin—drums
Brent DeRocher—bass, keys, programming, guitar
Jess Gaedtke—guitars, backing vocals, percussion
Joshua Gaedtke—guitars
Erik DeBower—drums
Linton Weems—keys, programming
Derek Brown—bass
Sam MacDonald—bass
Markus Kamp—percussion

Produced by:

Brent DeRocher

Comments:

Please note: We have only heard a 5-song sampler of the album.

Susan Robkin's How to say goodbye is impressive for a debut album—good straight forward melodic rock with crunchy guitars. Robkin has a rich and powerful voice which she uses well and with personality. The guitars sometimes dominate things a bit, and they aren't interesting enough in themselves, as are, for example, the similar guitar sound on Rainer Maria's latest. The songs include the catchy gentle walking-pace 'nobody knows you', the strumming 'Happiness' with a weary 'cry cry cry' refrain, distracting vocal distortion in the eastern-tinged 'Broken inside', and the slinky 'Pretty girl' with a bass-line like Heart's 'Magic man'.
     I can imagine a slightly re-recorded version of this making it 'big', but maybe lots of albums I haven't heard fall into that category. If you like Sheryl Crow and Melissa Etheridge, it is worth visiting her website for samples. (k_hester_k@yahoo.co.nz)

Thanks to Karen Hester for work on this entry.