Emerging Dou from the Celtic/World Pool :Shishonnah

Jenne Lennon answers our questions through Skype about her new project with fellow musician Liz Madden.

Photo taken by John Sisson

Photo taken by John Sisson

[3:46:07 AM] jose romel labatos: Hi Jenne, so new updates about your recording?
[3:47:56 AM] Jenne Lennon: Hello there Baxter. As a matter of fact, yes and thank you for asking.
[3:48:23 AM] Jenne Lennon: I was waiting to tell you until our recordings and press stuff and new photos are up, but I can give you a fair amount of details if you would like. 🙂
[3:49:13 AM] jose romel labatos: Sure 🙂 It would be a nice preview for the proper  launching 😉 So how many tracks are we expecting here?
[3:54:00 AM] Jenne Lennon: 4 to be exact. It will feature myself and Liz Madden from Dublin. She and I have teamed up to form Shishonnah. We are a duo. We sing all of the vocal parts and play just about all of the instruments. We write all of our own music. It’s a fusion of Celtic and world music. Very similar to the style of my last single “Anam/Spirit”
[3:54:35 AM] Jenne Lennon: Our first 4 tracks will be on the site in November. A full length album in early 2011, and the european release in the summer
[3:57:43 AM] jose romel labatos: Wow sounds amazing! How was the recording process like? Was it fun in the studio and did those tracks get a fair amount of time to get recorded?
[4:00:46 AM] Jenne Lennon: Well, so far we have only done initial demo recordings. A smaller amount of the instrumentation and vocal parts than we are planning, but it’s been an absolute joy to work with Liz. We are true partners. Writing and recording with her has undoubtedly been the most creatively fulfilling experience of my life
[4:01:54 AM] jose romel labatos: I subscribe to your blog and I know you’ve been anywhere. You love to travel. Do we expect to hear autobiographical stuff in these recordings?
[4:03:18 AM] Jenne Lennon: Oh, definitely. Both Liz and I travel across the world and the U.S. on a regular basis, and both of us have been greatly affected by our travels and the people we have met. Every song contains bits and pieces of Jenne and Liz and our experiences

Liz Madden

Liz Madden

[4:06:07 AM] jose romel labatos: How did you meet Liz?
[4:08:55 AM] Jenne Lennon: It’s a funny story. She used to sing with the successful Irish duo Rua. I was performed on the Chants Du Femmes concert alongside Rua at the Lorient Interceltique Festival in 2006. We tried staying in touch over the years, but always seemed to miss each other when I was in Dublin. Liz ended up marrying a wonderful man from Arkansas and she relocated to the states. We have been inseparable ever since.
[4:18:21 AM] jose romel labatos: That’s very interesting indeed!I am now listening to Liz myspace page. I notice that both of you have powerful expressive voices!  What will your fans expect in this album …vocally?


[4:22:52 AM] Jenne Lennon: Vocally, they will hear a very different use of style and technique from both Liz and I. We are both trained in many different styles besides classically, celtic, and musical theatre. Fans will hear native american, african, and eastern european inspired vocals, mixed in with the familiar styles that they normally hear from Liz and I.
[4:24:42 AM] jose romel labatos: I am so crazy about world instruments. What will we be hearing from both of you instrumentally?
[4:25:56 AM] Jenne Lennon: many different types of world percussion, Asian, African, Celtic, and native american mostly. Some Spanish instrumentation and of course, native american flute. We will also be using extremely old instruments, like the hurdy gurdy and some renaissance inspired sounds.
[4:26:29 AM] Jenne Lennon: oh, and of course, the good old Irish instrumentation at points.
[4:30:44 AM] jose romel labatos: I love the hurdy gurdy! I am glad I will hearing that one here. this appears to be a rich musical treat for all of us. so how many tracks are we expecting to hear in the album when it’s finished?
[4:31:45 AM] Jenne Lennon: Lol. That’s the difficult part. Between the two of us, we have written about 3 albums worth of music. Narrowing it down will be tough. We’re hoping to do the standard 12-14 tracks, maybe 16 at the most.
[4:33:13 AM] jose romel labatos: Sounds great! Yes because with the influences and discipline you both have , I am sure listeners will want more. Anything else we should know about this project?
[4:35:05 AM] Jenne Lennon: Thank you. Well, we are in the works to launch or own radio podcast in the new year. We are also working on an original score for Antigone, which will premiere in February, plus the release of a compilation album through our company Glencoe Records/Healing Sun Productions, along with several concerts in the U.S., Europe, and the U.K. in the Spring and Summer
[4:35:57 AM] jose romel labatos: Sounds like this is going to be a blast for 2011.
[4:36:24 AM] Jenne Lennon: Indeed. I truly hope so. But, it’s always a blast with Liz.

For more information visit:

http://www.myspace.com/jennelennon

and

http://www.myspace.com/lizmadden

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