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 She Sounds Like…
Nellie McKay May Be Compared To Other Young Female Singer/Songwriters But, Trust Us, She’s Like Nothing You’ve Ever Heard.
If you like Norah Jones, you’ll love Nellie McKay. Okay, that statement is total b.s. About the only things Nellie and Norah have in common is that they can play piano and share the same booker. Oh, and both of their names begin with “N.”
“I saw that on a display in a store: ‘If you like Norah Jones, you’ll love Nellie McKay,’” says Nellie, who has just got back from lunch with the people from CBS Sunday Morning, one of a handful of shows on which she’ll be performing to promote her debut record from Columbia Records, Get Away From Me. “I don’t think Norah Jones and I even elicit the same emotions.”
Although, Get Away From Me is sort of reminiscent of Norah’s debut’s title. “It was thrown out there,” Nellie laughs, “but it’s obviously the opposite. We didn’t think it was going to be the final title, but it represents a lot of things to me. Like, get away from me with your product placement, or get away from me, George Bush.”
Yeah, we don’t think sweet ol’ Norah would scream “Die, motherfucker!” and then launch into a sort-of-rap saying, “I’m sorry for the mess / The stupid way I’m dressed / I guess I failed my test,” while also talking about Janet Reno being “devoured by the id,” like Nellie does on the song “Sari.” In fact, the song is more reminiscent of Eminem, one of few modern artists Nellie admits to listening to.
“I read this article where the writer was saying, ‘It is obvious Nellie has been influenced heavily by Fiona Apple and Carole King.’ I barely know how to say Fiona Apple’s name,” admits Nellie. “I don’t even listen to her. My musical education stops at 1970. To say I’m heavily influenced by people I’ve never heard, that’s pretty, well, off. I’m sure they’re great, but I’ve never heard them.”
What does Nellie sound like, then? If you play her CD through iTunes, the genre comes up as “jazz.” “I can see some of the jazz influences, sure, but it’s more pop. More than any other genre, pop combines influences, which is pretty obvious on the record.”
When you do pick up the album, which is actually two CDs of nine songs each (“You can’t listen to 18 songs of mine in a row,” comments Nellie. “18 songs is a lot to demand of the listener. Plus it’s almost like a CD as a record. You can listen to the other side another time.”), you’ll be drawn into the mellow laments of “Manhattan Avenue” and “I Wanna Get Married.” Or you’ll notice her obsession with animals (“The Dog Song” and “Toto Dies”). But what you should really know is that behind all these provocative songs is a 19-year-old woman. (Oh, and Geoff Emerick, who engineered Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Abbey Road.)
Of course, where else would an underage songstress who studied formal jazz piano at East Stroudsburg University and who sings about gin and vermouth get her start but at gay bars? “That’s all I used to play,” laughs Nellie. “I don’t think you have to be of age to sing at clubs, but I’ve always kind of looked older anyway.”
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Instinct Online 
