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Miss Tess & the Bon Ton Parade

Studio 99
Nashua, NH

Named by the Boston Globe as a "Local on the Verge" for 2008, Miss Tess is a young, Boston-based performing songwriter. Aptly naming her style Modern Vintage , her music bridges eras and genres. Miss Tess is celebrating being named Outstanding Folk Artist of the Year at the December Boston Music Awards. The Folk part was a surprise but the award is much appreciated. She has been nominated for another BMA this year, this time in the jazz category

Miss Tess has just released her fifth album, "Darling, Oh Darling", a collection of original songs, drawing inspiration from many roots genres including swing, blues, jazz, country, and folk.

Brian Tucker of Bootleg Magazine on the new album: "Miss Tess has grace, and the chops, to deliver an album of new material brimming with 30s era jazz and swing or bouncing energy of the 1950s. Tess sounds transported from decades past without ending up a caricature. Shes sultry, sassy, fun, and all heart. While steeped in the era that spawned Fats Waller or Bessie Smith shes completely her own voice, capable of stepping outside traditional sounds altogether.

Shes grown leaps and bounds since the 2007s Modern Vintage - her voice warmer and more lighthearted, and variety on Darling, Oh Darling is abundant. All of the songs are written by Miss Tess, no covers or standards here, the material ranging from steamy jazz to swing and country rave-ups. Her voice is what the word romantic means; the sound easily a soundtrack to relationships at their best or a little rocky. Its uplifting and caressing; imagine Sade or Linda Ronstadt performing in the Jazz Age. The band is tight, the playing sharp and steadfastly inspired.

Oh No sonically informs the ear to whats at work here. It begins monotone, as if pouring out from an old radio, then comes forward in stereo, how were used to hearing music. Its fuller, richer, and regardless, it still sounds timeless and effervescent. Miss Tess doesnt stick to a single period, from the country stroll of Love to the on-fire swagger of That Oo Oo Oo, the rockabilly showstopper I Dont Want to See You Anymore or the carnival feel of Time Can Take the Pain Away. Parts of Darling, Oh Darling are downright sexy, like moments of new love and candlelit rooms, notably the heavy horns and easy tempo of Riding Home, where her low voice accompanies them, singing Ridin, Ridin, Ridin home to you/Theres nothing Id rather do. It doesnt get any better, more exemplary, than that. Its the sound of love, of longing, of someone dug in deep. But Miss Tess illuminates the sadder side with similar strength and earnestness. The title track is a heartbreaker, in which the narrator sings to their lover of not worrying about them leaving, that their love is true. Its bittersweet, yet tender regardless of its austerity.

Whats imperative, and fantastic, about an artist like Miss Tess is that she sounds real, the music equally real. Her singing is like someone looking you in the eye, the feeling genuine and meaningful. Miss Tess doesnt attempt to borrow an old style; she exudes a breathy style of performing thats both timeless and new."

Miss Tess continues to tour around around the country with her backing band, The Bon Ton Parade: Alec Spiegelman (sax & clarinet), Ben Davis (upright bass), Matt Meyer (drums), bringing her sound to theaters, nightclubs, bars, and coffeeshops.

Kid Friendly: No

Dog Friendly: No

Non-Smoking: No

Wheelchair Accessible: No

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