Kiss Me (Cassette)

Featured Artists: Sixpence None The Richer

Your first clue might be the way the songs bleed into one another. Leigh's naïve and disarming voice floats and hovers over Matt's articulate, emotive guitar and string arrangements, ascending and descending like an uncertain angel on Jacob's ladder. The various layers and textures of the music intertwine, hold together for a moment, spin, and rejoin. Suddenly, you realize that you're already listening to the third song on the album, unaware that the first two had ever ended. It's okay. Take a deep breath. Relax. That's how it's meant to be.

"This project is like a part of our lives pulled up, roots and all", says Matt Slocum, the band leader and principal songwriter for the Dove Award-winning group Sixpence None The Richer. "It's not a scattered collection of unrelated songs. It's all one story, a whole story, a journey, a struggle. We wanted to give listeners some of that by overlapping the first few songs."

Sixpence None The Richer, the self-titled, flagship release for Steve Taylor's new Squint Entertainment label, follows up the rave success of Sixpence's "This Beautiful Mess" (albeit a year and a half later than expected)

After recording two critically acclaimed full-length albums and an EP for an independent (and now defunct) label, Sixpence None The Richer found themselves cast into an unexpected and frustrating artistic limbo. What should have been a high point for the Austin, Texas transplants, instead became a two and a half-year struggle to regain control of their creative future.

When their label collapsed financially, an outside company quickly claimed ownership of the band's contract, a move that prevented them from recording. Meanwhile, This Beautiful Mess was making its own inroads, increasing the band's fan base and racking up a list of accolades that included a Dove Award for "Best Modern Rock Album," a Dove Nomination for "Best Modern Rock Song," and numerous #1 radio hits in the rock and modern rock formats. Through heavy touring, despite label confusion, Sixpence continued to boost their sales figures and to cement their reputation as a compelling live act, winning the artistic praise and respect of such gospel music luminaries as Amy Grant,dc Talk, Michael W. Smith andJars of Clay. But in the end, such successes were bittersweet, overshadowed as they were by an ongoing sense of paralysis. "When I think about those months of struggle," says Leigh Nash, lead singer and one of the band's founding members, "I just remember it as one long season of waiting. Everything seemed so up in the air. Our only choices, really, were to fall into despair over it or give it all to God and just learn to wait. I think we started out doing the first, but somewhere along the way learned to do the second."

The progression of songs on this new Sixpence None The Richer project unfold in a linear fashion, revealing in a literate manner the journey from despair and frustration to patience, renewed commitment and rebirth. Much like the Psalms of David, the songs express human experience and emotion without becoming mired in the specifics of one person's particular problems. To be sure, these songs were birthed out of the trials Matt, Leigh and drummer Dale Baker endured firsthand, but the lyrics could as easily be about the experiences of any who seek to wrestle through the night of their fear and despair; as Jacob did with the angel; finally prevailing to receive a blessing.

Finding a creative ally in producer Steve Taylor, Sixpence None the Richer entered the studio, seeking to capture on tape the soul of their struggle and subsequent deliverance. "While we were recording," Matt relates, "we started every day by reading a Psalm aloud. What David expressed in that book just seemed to lock in so well to where we were. The Psalms aren't antiseptic. They dive down to the depths.But they don't wallow in their despair. They find a way back to the heights, rejoicing in God's deliverance and faithfulness. Our dream had been to be musicians and make records. We started out very idealistic. When we saw how the real world acts, and our dream was threatened, it was shocking to us. Our ideals shattered. It was a long road, a long climb back, and a heavy maturing process for all of us that ultimately drove us to our knees and to God and made our faith even stronger."

One result of the painful process was a paring down of the band's roster. Faced with the possibility of never recording again, Sixpence's membership was reduced to its original three members. While they watched their downsizing with regret, the end result was a broadened musical palette for the core members of the group. No longer married to guitar, bass and drum arrangements, Sixpence None the Richer began to experiment with more accordion, pedal steel guitar, cello and other strings.

Individual Dossier

Artist: Matt Slocum
Specialty: Guitarist, Cellist, Principal Songwriter
Full Name:Matthew Preston Slocum
Birthday: December 27, 1972
Hometown: New Braunfels, TX
Current Residence: Nashville, TN.
Marital Status: Single
Height: 5'7"
Weight:"You're on a need to know basis, and you don't need to know."
Hair: Black
Eyes: Blue

Artist profile:

• The 24-year-old began playing guitar at 14, and writing songs at 16
• Studied cello with Paul Olefsky for three years at the University of Texas in Austin
• Co-produced Sixpence None the Richer's Tickets For A Prayer Wheel EP (1995)
• Has appeared with Amy Grant (as her cellist) on The Oprah Winfrey Show, CeCe's Place, and at The Tennessee Performing Arts Center.
• Has served as guest live guitarist and /or cellist for Over the Rhine, Sarah Masen, Cindy Morgan, Say-So, Model Engine and The Choir.

Has Played cello and /or arranged strings by Switchfoot, Say-So, Julie Miller, Plumb, the Waiting, All Star United, Jennifer Knapp and Grover Levy, in addition to all string arrangements on Sixpence None The Richer.

Personal Profile:

• An only child, Matt was born in Rhode Island and reared in Texas.
• Hobbies include reading, collecting laser discs, running, and extolling the musical prowess of Radiohead.
• Ran in 1996 in the Dublin Marathon (Ireland) and finished.
• Obsessed with books, particularly old ones and first editions.
• Has a deep passion to learn to sail.
• Has been described as quiet, deep feeling, mischievous, introspective, and intelligent and "an A+ guy."
• Pet peeves: When a person invites you to a movie and then falls asleep or leaves in the middle of it; having mayonnaise put on a sandwich despite having specifically requested,"No mayo;" paying full-price for a really bad movie; and being beat up and having your lunch money taken away.

Nicknames: "Sloak" and "The Little Guy Who Used to be in Charge."

Individual Dossier

ARTIST: Leigh Nash
SPECIALTY: Vocals
FULL NAME: Leigh Anne Nash
BIRTHDAY: June 27, 1976
HOMETOWN: New Braunfels, TX.
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Nashville, TN.
MARITAL STATUS: Married
HEIGHT: 5'4"
WEIGHT: "One twenty- __...none of your beeeezwax!"
HAIR:"Red, with silver and black spots."
EYES: "Green, with one black spot on each eye."

ARTIST PROFILE:

• The 21-year-old began singing almost as soon as she could talk.
• At the age of 12 Leigh performed regularly at a Texan country & western dance hall.
• Plays guitar "well enough to write songs."
• "Best Female Vocalist"- 1994 Syndicate Magazine Readers' Poll.
• Penned the Sixpence classic, "The Garden," as well as the new standout, "Easy to Ignore."
• Has performed as a cameo vocalist with Kevin Smith and Michael Tait of dc Talk, Starflyer 59, Hoi Polloi and Circle of Dust.

PERSONAL PROFILE:

• The youngest daughter of two, Leigh married her husband Mark in May of 1996.
• Named 1993 Homecoming Princess of New Braunfels High School - Home of the Mighty Unicorns.
• Hobbies include painting, writing, playing video games and listening to old country music.
• Has a pet ferret named Hattie.
• Described as a keen observer, fun, kind, a recovering pyromaniac, jestfully sassy, endearing, elegant, and funny.

Pet Peeves: cigarette smoke, rudeness, dirty hands, arrogance, contact sports, and bitterness.

Nicknames: "Leander," "Leigh-Bob,""Pooh," and"Beigh Lingham.

Individual Dossier

Specialty: Drummer, Percussionist
Full name: Dale Ryan Baker
Birthday: June 29, 1966
Hometown: Branson, MO
Current Residence: Nashville, TN
Marital Status: Married
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 140lbs.
Hair: Sandy Blond
Eyes: Hazel

Artist Profile:

• Received his first drum set as a gift from his grandmother, at the age of five.
• In addition to drums, Dale plays piano and guitar.
• Studied Afro-Cuban and Brazilian percussion, as well as Indonesian, African and American music, while attending the University of North Texas.
• Co-starred as"Dave" in WGN's Saturday morning cult hit, PHOTON.
• Co-wrote and / or co-produced multiple Sixpence None the Richer songs.
• Has performed with Bobby McFerrin, Tito Puente, Jeff Coffin, Shoji Tabuchi, and Marcus Printup. And more recently Vigilantes of Love, Plumb, Jesus Music, Sarah Jahn, and Nicholas Giaconia.

Personal Profile:

• The oldest of five children, Dale married his wife Carole in July of 1997.
• Hobbies include camping, caving, biking, reading cooking, creative writing, art projects, visiting art museums, and the art of filmmaking and acting - all with Carole.
• Interested in the vegetarian lifestyle and organic farming.
• Dale's favorite books include "L'Abri" by Edith Schaeffer, "Phantastes" by George MacDonald, "Lust For Life" by Irving Stone, "Night" by Elie Wiesel, and "Pierre and Jean" by Guy De Maupassant.
• Has been described as a good listener, reflective, deceptively lighthearted, gentle, shy, expressive in the company of close friends, and a "Closet perfectionist."

Pet Peeves: loud noises, reckless drivers, 18-Wheelers, small talk, cockroaches, and camel crickets.

Group Dossier

ARTIST: Sixpence None The Richer
FOUNDED: 1992 by Matt Slocum & Leigh Nash
ORIGIN: Austin, TX
TRIO STATUS: 1993 with the addition of drummer Dale Baker
BAND ALUMNI: J.J. Plasencio (bass), Tess Wiley (rhythm guitar)

WEB SITE: Sixpence None The Richer
PRODUCER: Steve Taylor
STYLE: Eclectic Modern Rock
ADDRESS: Sixpence None The Richer, P.O. Box 125, Brentwood, TN. 37024

Discography

SIXPENCE NONE THE RICHER
TICKETS FOR A PRAYER WHEEL
THIS BEAUTIFUL MESS
THE FATHERLESS AND THE WIDOW

Band Profile

• "Top 10 Albums of the Year" (The Fatherless And The Widow)1993 Billboard Critics Choice.


• Acoustic performance for CCM-TV / The Family Channel (network TV debut, 1994).


• Mainstage performances at Greenbelt and Flevo festivals (European debut, 1994).


• Tours in support of 10,000 Maniacs (1994) and The Smithereens (1995), and as headliner with Dryve (1996), Black Eyed Sceva/Model Engine (1996-97), Dimestore Prophets (1997) and Sarah Jahn


• Contributions to tribute albums honoring Steve Taylor (I Predict A Clone, 1994) and Petra (Never Say Dinosaur, 1996).


• "Pop Group of the Year" 1994 Syndicate Magazine Readers Pick.


• "Best Alternative Band" 1994 You! Magazine Critics Pick.


• "Best Alternative Band" 1995 You! Magazine Critics Pick.


• 1996 Dove Award for "Alternative/Modern Rock Album of the Year" (This Beautiful Mess)


• 1996 Dove Nomination for "Alternative/Modern Rock Song of the year" ("Within a Room Somewhere").


• Key appearance at D.C./L.A. 97 and mainstage performances at Creation, Cornerstone, Atlanta, The Purple Door, etc. (Summer, 97).

About The Songs

Sixpence None the Richer, Song By Song

Released February 1998 on Squint Entertainment

Sixpence None The Richer is:

• Leigh Bingham: voice
• Matt Slocum: guitar, cello
• Dale Baker: drums

Produced by Steve Taylor

TRACK LISTING

Song trilogy #1 [songs 1-3]: exploring the crisis

1. We Have Forgotten

Matt: I was reading a book by Peter Kreeft in which he was quoting Plato's picture of a chariot driven by horses with broken wings, an image showing man's deep desire to reach the heavens, but being forbidden by his mortality. And I thought: isn't that like our dreams? aren't they constantly trying to fly unsuccessfully? And after a while, when our dreams have tried to fly and have fallen down so many times, we almost want them not to fly, because the pain is so great from watching them fall that we'd rather just have them stay on the ground. In other words, we fall in love with our problems. They become the norm for us, and happiness the abnormality. We forget how it is supposed to be: we were made for perfection. There is that remembrance in us from Adam and Eve in the garden. They knew perfection once and one day we will know it again. We must live in this hope.

2.Anything

Matt: I think there is a point when our problems sap so much life from us that we have no more perseverance to fight the constant temptation to just give up. And in these times why do we find God strangely absent? Perhaps He wishes us to seek Him intently, to long for a sign. And like the Israelites in the desert we wait. This song is a type of prayer for that sign, and a long sigh for anything that might show the way.

3. The Waiting Room

Matt: This song is sort of a lashing out against the powers that had put our artistic endeavours on hold. The feeling of stagnation and waiting was like being in a cell, a type of waiting room with no escape. References to the Prolific and the Devourer are from a W.H. Auden book of poetry which explores the war between art and commerce.

4. Kiss Me

Matt: A painting of two people in love soliciting kisses in the forest under the moonlight...

5. Easy To Ignore

Leigh: I wrote "Easy to Ignore" with a heavy heart. It's about a relationship that is sometimes very painful and taxing for me.

6. Puedo Escribir

Matt: A small section of the Pablo Neruda poem, "Tonight I Can Write…" set to music. A reminiscence of lost love that can be no more.

7. I Can't Catch You

Matt: A lament over emotional baggage that always seems to be heaviest when entering into a new relationship.

8. Lines of My Earth

Matt: This is a song comparing a dry soul to the dryness of barren farmland. No fruit will come from my earth until the rain falls and it can drink itself back to richness and fertility.

Song trilogy #2 [songs 9-11]: exploring the solution

9. Sister, Mother

Matt:The Proverbs tell us of the Maiden Wisdom, who walks in the streets calling out to the simple to come and eat the meat and drink the wine she has prepared. She exhorts us to come and be her kin, to learn from her the wisdom in life we need. We must desire to be a part of her family, to seek her and let her speak to us the words we need to hear.

10. I Won't Stay Long<

Matt:Sam Ashworth's sister gave me a tape of some songs Sam had recorded and I particularly liked this one. The song's mood and the Beatles-esque chord changes made it a perfect fit for this album.

11. Love

Matt:"Love" is a dialogue between the two characters set up in "Sister, Mother"- the Maiden Wisdom and the person searching for her. In this song she speaks to the seeker, telling him he must die to really live, that love is the most excellent way. The seeker accepts this wisdom realizing this is the only thing he truly needs.

12. Moving On

Matt: This song is meant to close the record with the realization that the past has had its toll, but that it is gone and it is time to move on. God has brought redemption and deliverance, and with them a determination not to be ruined again.

Limited edition 12" vinyl release replaces "Easy to Ignore" and "Puedo Escribir" with the previously unreleased track "Sad But True."