Miss Tess is Brooklyn-based performing songwriter and bandleader. She currently tours with a tight-nit quartet complete with sax/clarinet, upright bass, drums, and herself on guitar and vocals. Similar to artists such at Tom Waits, Randy Newman, Madeleine Peyroux, or Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks, Miss Tess draws inspiration from older styles of music, and uses those sounds in the service of her own personality.
Critics have had a hard time assigning Tess’s music to a specific genre; when she still lived in Boston she won a Boston Music Award for "Outstanding Folk Artist of the Year" (2008), in 2009 she received a nomination for "Best Jazz Act", and in 2010 was nominated for "Best Roots Act" by the Boston Phoenix. Miss Tess & The Bon Ton Parade not only played in most venues in Boston, but are also hardened road warriers who have found homes in all types of venues ranging from upscale jazz clubs, music festivals, to local dive bars.
Miss Tess has just released her sixth album "The Waltz Set". The album debuts five original waltzes and a waltz cover version of Skeeter Davis' hit song "End of the World" (1962). The compositions are airy and heartfelt descriptions of bicycle rides, ferris wheels, and lost love.
Darling, oh Darling, the fifth release from Miss Tess, shows the performing artist and songwriter transcending the retro-label often appended to her music in the past. Although the music maintains a certain feeling of nostalgia, upon a few listens one will find unique personality and a fresh approach in these original compositions. The new album makes use of varied instrumentation including country-tinged pedal steel, a three part horn section, barroom piano, and a lonesome banjo. Miss Tess says about the compositions, “I wanted each song to be recorded like I heard it in my head, whether or not we had those instruments in the regular performing band”. The album, as well as the stage show for that matter, is interspersed with up-tempo playful ditties, mournful love songs, and offbeat charmers.
These days Tess, along with her sax/clarinet player Alec Spiegelman and drummer Matt Meyer, are living in Brooklyn during the rare occasions they are not on the road. They’ll be continuing with a very busy tour schedule throughout the rest of the year and plan to start recording a new album soon.
“The thrift-shop clothes, the vintage Weymann guitar, the demure stage name – all those clues signify, right from the start, that Miss Tess plans to take us on a retro roadtrip. The vocal stylings of the past perfectly suit her bell-like voice — more Madeleine Peyroux or Zooey Deschanel than Norah Jones – with its offbeat blend of sassiness and winsome charm.Gimmicks like that can easily fall flat, and I must admit I felt a little trepidation as I first put Miss Tess’s newest CD, Darling, Oh Darling, on my player. It didn’t take long, though, for me to relax and breathe a sigh of relief. Miss Tess has the chops to pull it off.” –Holly Hughes, Blogcritics
“This is music cut from a different cloth than the cardboard-stiff newness of more trend driven singer-songwriters, and it’s appeal more closely resembles your favorite pair of jeans: the lovingly broken-in elegance that inspires confident ease." –Charleston City Paper
"Outstanding Folk Artist of the Year" –2008 Boston Music Awards
“The area’s next musical sensation” –Boston Magazine
“Miss Tess takes old music and makes it sound fresh. She also makes new music with a sense of history and context to it. No matter what label you want to put on it, it’s damn good music. Period.” –Matt Smith, Club Passim
“If Billie Holiday and Chet Atkins had a musical baby, it would be Miss Tess. With a calmness that belies the intensity in her music, Miss Tess will cement a place in your music- loving heart with her first note.” –Caroline Aiken, Singer/songwriter
“This is music cut from a different cloth than the cardboard-stiff newness of more trend driven singer-songwriters, and it’s appeal more closely resembles your favorite pair of jeans: the lovingly broken-in elegance that inspires confident ease.” –Jon Santiago, Charleston City Paper
“True to her grassroots style, Tess’s connection to the audience is incredibly personal, making it a better show than many by popular musicians” –Jenica Jones, Bootleg Magazine
“Miss Tess’ ‘Modern Vintage’ is just that: a fresh - and refreshing - take on classic themes from a bygone era." –Brendan Hogan, WGBH Radio
