The Lovell Sisters with special guest Kristina Train

Show Description

There is a word often used when describing rising Americana stars The Lovell Sisters: Passion. It’s what these three young women (ages 18-23) feel when they step on stage. Passion is the fuel that feeds their writing and arranging, and it colors every note they play and sing on Time To Grow, their upcoming album. Winners of Prairie Home Companion's National Teen Talent Competition in 2005, the Lovell Sisters spread the heavenly harmony of sisterhood and sibling string virtuosity — Jessica on fiddle, Megan on dobro, Rebecca on guitar and mandolin (the first female to win the Merlefest mandolin contest).

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On October 20, Blue Note Records will release Spilt Milk, the debut album from singer Kristina Train. Train—who was born in New York City and raised in Savannah, Georgia—has made an urbane, soulful, and lush debut that showcases her stunning voice. As a vocalist, Train alternates between gentle balladeering and powerful belting, her bluesy vibrato revealing the breadth and elegance of a young Dusty Springfield — a little bit London, a little bit Memphis.
 
Train will be hitting the road in the coming weeks, giving audiences around the country an early chance to hear her perform the affecting songs from her debut in a live setting. In addition to showcase performances at Joe’s Pub in New York City on July 29 and the Hotel Café in Los Angeles on August 19, Train will also be opening for singer Chris Isaak on a month-long string of tour dates that kick-off on August 8 in Houston, Texas. See full touring schedule below.
 
Interestingly, Train’s story is in many ways the inverse of Springfield’s. In her case it’s the soulful Southern girl with the awe-inspiring voice that heads to London to find inspiration and record her debut statement. Spilt Milk was recorded with Jimmy Hogarth, the sought-after British producer whose recent credits include Duffy, Corinne Bailey Rae, and James Blunt. “Kristina possesses a true classic voice — an effortless delivery with complete commitment to the emotion of the song,” Hogarth says. “It was a real pleasure and an honor to have worked on this very special recording.”
 
Powerhouse songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and arranger Eg White (a Grammy Awards Record of the Year nominee earlier this year for Adele’s “Chasing Pavements”) co-wrote most of the songs with Train, who delivers them so convincingly that the words could be pages torn from her diary. The title track unfolds with an almost cinematic grandeur, its string-laden chorus swelling with widescreen melancholy. Balancing the sultry with the strong, Train excels on bittersweet breakup/makeup numbers like “Don’t Remember” and “It’s Over Now.” As the aphorism of the album title suggests, Train knows how, over the course of a song, to walk away from a relationship with tremendous style.
 
“I wanted my album to offer glimpses of my influences, but not sound like them,” Train says. “Jimmy, Eg, and I are of similar background, we appreciate the same music and we have similar tastes. The arrangements are just what we felt the songs needed. They give the songs flavor, but don’t try to steal anybody else’s style. My hope was for the album to nod to the music I love, while still sounding modern.”