CD REVIEW: Awful Purdies make stunning debut

To say the Awful Purdies sing awful purdy would be cheap and easy. And this band is neither.

The five singer/songwriters in this Iowa City all-female ensemble are stellar musicians, equally adept at playing strings, winds and percussion as they are at singing beautifully and writing insightful, pensive lyrics.

The group, formed in 2006, has just cut its self-titled debut CD.

And what a glorious debut it is.

It's a collection of original songs and cover tunes that sound original. Alt-folk is the basic genre, but elements of cowboy country, bluegrass and roots are sprinkled throughout.

The disc opens with a hoedown by banjo player Nicole Upchurch that makes you want to leap to your feet and swing your partner or anything else nearby. The blazing fiddle and plucky banjo and percussion make a tantalizing hook that reels you into the rest of the CD.

Percussionist, accordion and whistle player Katie Roche then picks up “Mechanical Ditch Digger” and plows through it, laying her deep, earthy alto alongside Katie Burnes' driving cello dressed with light harp frills.

Janis Joplin's “Turtle Blues” starts with a all five voices in an a cappella bluesy lament. Banjo and cello slip in under fiddle and harp player Annie Savage, who bends with ease through the lyrics. The whole effect creates a swampy backwoods blues with a hint of mystery.

Instrumentals tiptoe lightly into “When I Grow Up” before guitarist Marcy Rosenbaum plants her feet firmly in the delightful lyrics. And just as quickly, the instruments plunk back to silence, broken by a mournful cello ushering in a “Cluck Old Hen” hoedown.

There's so much to love in this CD. Every song spins a compelling tale. The solo voices and instrumentals are marvelous but when they link arms, it's magic.

FAST TAKE

Title: “Awful Purdies,” self-titled debut CD

Label: Self-released

Performance: 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 17, with Arthur Lee Land at 5 p.m.

Where: The Mill Restaurant, 120 E. Burlington St., Iowa City

Admission: $8

Information: www.icmill.com/music/calendar.shtml and www.awfulpurdies.com