Cober: The Western Cutter (2009)
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When an artist's music has the capability to inspire euphoria and communicate the most profound of human sorrows simultaneously, people pay attention. For the past 11 years, Sheila Bommakanti has been turning heads as the founder and songwriter of the band Cober, and with her unique blend of delay-drenched guitars and hauntingly-beautiful vocals, she continues to do just that on Cober's latest album, The Western Cutter. Additionally, Sheila's one-piece band approach has created further allure. Armed with a double-necked guitar and two Marshall half-stacks, Cober's live performance has been described by one writer as "a very soothing sensual experience."
As Cober, Sheila has written and recorded four critically lauded albums and has toured extensively. "Home is a town at the end of I-90," she says. "Lately, it seems I've had this habit of releasing an album and then moving across the country," she explains. Sheila wrote and released The Western Cutter while living in Boston. Several months later, she moved from Boston back to Seattle, where she first launched Cober. (Incidentally, the record release party for Cober's previous album, Eulogy, also functioned as Sheila's farewell Seattle show in light of her move to Boston.)
While writing relatable songs is important to every songwriter, The Western Cutter showcases Sheila's unique ability to connect with her listeners not through lyrics alone, but also through creating a mood within the music. "Not everything people experience is easily communicated in words, but there is always a feeling that is present," says Sheila. "That's what I try to create using the guitars and vocals." Indeed reviewers have been quite receptive to Sheila's songwriting style. The Boston Herald wrote, "On the surface, The Western Cutter moves at the deliberate pace of a burning incense stick, with textured layers of sound and emotions that elicit the sullen passion of Portishead." Boston's Weekly Dig echoed this sentiment, declaring the album "simply delightful."
Moreover, Cober's music has an enduring quality which has been evident since its inception. Sheila started Cober in the winter of 2000 and released the album, Crashpilot, later that year. In praise of the debut album, The Seattle Times wrote, "Crashpilot is one of those few recordings that creeps under your skin, and really stands up to repeated listenings." Two years later, Sheila released Cober's second album entitled, The Breaker. The Boston Phoenix's review said, "The second album is a bruised, bitterly elegant - and often devastating - exposition on betrayal, emotional abandonment, and withering regret. The surprise is how painstakingly lovely and graceful all the blood letting sounds."
In 2006, Cober's Eulogy was released, and it marked a significant shift in the band's history, as Sheila decided to use a one-piece band approach for the album rather than the customary full band sound heard on previous records. "My path hasn't been typical," says Sheila. "Many songwriters start out performing solo and later add backing bands for live shows and recordings. I've written and recorded as a one-piece band from the start, singing and playing all the instruments except the drums, but live I'd have a full band. I've come to realize that playing live the way I record more accurately reflects what Cober is, and the audience gets a more intimate show." Cober's new incarnation was soon welcomed as exemplified by the Northeast Performer's review which stated, "But where each delayed guitar part glimmers, the tie that binds is Bommakanti's expressively poetic voice, at once both haunting and inviting, a gentle caress in a darkened room mapped by candlelight."
As a continually evolving artist, Sheila looks forward to performing as Cober and touching as many lives as possible with her music. "Even before I began playing guitar and writing songs," she says, "music kept me grounded. I think it does that for a lot of people. The listener's connection to the music will always be important to me for that reason."
Discography: Crashpilot (2000), The Breaker (2002), Eulogy (2006),
The Western Cutter (2009)
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