Firekeeper – To Wake The Living (Make Art Now)
Firekeeper is a San Francisco folktronica duo, comprising of producer / guitarist / vocalist Becky White and drummer / designer Nathan Pundt. Both were core members of Becky White and the Secret Mission, a long running experimental Americana outfit, with a reputation for taking elements of other genres, like reggae and post-grunge / alternative, and integrating them into their west-coast folk-roots sound. If you get a chance, check out their 2007 album “Last Days Of Empire”.
The Firekeeper project provides an opportunity to try something different, where beats, field recordings, synths and guitars can come together. Recorded with a feel for the past – the instrumentation alternates between scratchy and old, post-punk and weird folk – and the effect is enhanced by White’s bruised vocals and their delicate, woozy melodies. The combination of digital and analogue sound contemporizes the collection, though it’s their songs that invariably take centre stage.
Beginning with “Great Unknown” - Pundt’s uncomplicated drum pattern maps out the track’s unswerving course, and White adds plenty of detail via her rich vocals and the song’s inherent catchiness. “Waiting for the Queen” is simply outstanding; it’s probably the best song on the album, and White’s enthusiasm for the drama, together with the lyrical twists and turns, is contagious. They end with the title track, a shimmering combination of trebly percussion and a wandering lyric – its six-minutes flies by.
“PRAISE FOR FIREKEEPER”
“Becky White’s raspy voice is like an instrument unto itself, an exotic blend of otherworldly sound that draws you into a visionary cosmic space, as if a shaman has materialized inside your head to lead you on a journey of infinite discovery. Tune in.”
- Bruce Joel Rubin,
Screenwriter, Ghost, Jacob’s Ladder, The Time Traveler’s Wife - Bruce Joel Rubin, Screenwriter - Ghost, Jacob’s Ladder, The Time Traveler’s Wife
"FIREKEEPER - “TO WAKE THE LIVING”"
From the album review on PopCultureClassics.Com !
FIREKEEPER - “TO WAKE THE LIVING”
We were shamefully late in catching up with this album, released in 2013, but it has quickly become one of our favorites. Firekeeper, the San Francisco electro-folk duo, comprised of Becky White (producer/vocalist/guitarist) and Nathan Pundt (drummer/designer), take a spare, earnest, experimental approach to Americana music. From the instantly engaging opener, “Great Unknown,” to the lovely “Waiting For The Queen” to the yearning “Farthest Shore” to the quietly, hauntingly epic title track that closes the album, you’ll be under the duo’s spell. With literate lyrics and compelling vocals, Firekeeper keeps the alt-folk flame burning bright. - Pop Culture Classics
"F I R E K E E P E R on Radio Valencia San Francisco"
Radio Interview
listen to the archive here
"F I R E K E E P E R : Surrender To The Great Unknown"
Music Monday: Firekeeper Surrender To The Great Unknown
From the moment I heard Firekeeper I was “taken”. The heavy beats of Nathan Pundt and floating-just-above-the-earth-plane soul of Becky White has a way of getting instantaneously under your skin; adventure, passion and longing. “I Surrender!”
Playing at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival