Biography
Maria Taylor lent her warm, casual vocals to multiple endeavors before stepping forward as a solo singer/songwriter, with the most prominent of those efforts being the dreamy pop duo Azure Ray that she created alongside longtime partner Orenda Fink. Entering the world in 1976 in Birmingham, Alabama, Taylor began performing at age fifteen in the local Birmingham duo Little Red Rocket, a pop/rock outfit whose sound invited comparisons to Belly and Veruca Salt. After issuing Who Did You Pay in 1997 and It’s in the Sound in 2000 while on the Geffen Records roster, Little Red Rocket was caught in the corporate merger between Geffen and Universal Music Group. The group consequently dissolved, prompting Taylor to move to Athens, Georgia with bandmate Orenda Fink. Once settled in their new surroundings, the pair re-formed as Azure Ray.
Conor Oberst’s discerning ear brought Azure Ray’s plaintive pop sound to the attention of the Saddle Creek band Now It’s Overhead, which invited the two women to join its lineup. As members of that group, Taylor and Fink joined the Saddle Creek roster yet continued releasing Azure Ray material through the independent label Warm Recordings. Both Azure Ray and Now It’s Overhead issued modestly received self-titled debut albums in 2001; the following year Taylor and Fink established full-time residence in Omaha and delivered Burn and Shiver, Azure Ray’s second full-length release. The duo’s third album, Hold on Love, appeared in 2003 and earned favorable notice from the indie community thanks to the singles “The Drinks We Drank Last Night” and “New Resolution.” Now It’s Overhead’s Fall Back Open arrived in 2004 during an intensive touring schedule, after which Azure Ray disbanded that same year, although the two musicians sustained their creative partnership on other projects.
Having already contributed backing vocals to various releases by Moby, Bright Eyes, and Crooked Fingers, Taylor launched her solo career with the 2005 album 11:11. That debut juxtaposed introspective tracks such as “Birmingham 1982” against brighter numbers like “One for the Shareholder,” an approach that also reflected the meticulous songcraft of Carole King and Laura Nyro. Taylor’s second solo effort, Lynn Teeter Flower, arrived two years later and further examined the 1970s singer/songwriter aesthetic, while Savannah Drive in 2008 documented her acoustic collaborations with Andy LeMaster. Maintaining steady output, Taylor issued LadyLuck the next year and simultaneously prepared another Azure Ray album, Drawing Down the Moon, which surfaced in 2010. Even after Azure Ray’s reunion, both artists continued solo work, with Taylor releasing her fourth album, Overlook, in 2011 and Something About Knowing two years later. In the Next Life, which appeared in 2016, found Taylor reflecting on the pleasures and wistful undercurrents of a more stable existence.
Conor Oberst’s discerning ear brought Azure Ray’s plaintive pop sound to the attention of the Saddle Creek band Now It’s Overhead, which invited the two women to join its lineup. As members of that group, Taylor and Fink joined the Saddle Creek roster yet continued releasing Azure Ray material through the independent label Warm Recordings. Both Azure Ray and Now It’s Overhead issued modestly received self-titled debut albums in 2001; the following year Taylor and Fink established full-time residence in Omaha and delivered Burn and Shiver, Azure Ray’s second full-length release. The duo’s third album, Hold on Love, appeared in 2003 and earned favorable notice from the indie community thanks to the singles “The Drinks We Drank Last Night” and “New Resolution.” Now It’s Overhead’s Fall Back Open arrived in 2004 during an intensive touring schedule, after which Azure Ray disbanded that same year, although the two musicians sustained their creative partnership on other projects.
Having already contributed backing vocals to various releases by Moby, Bright Eyes, and Crooked Fingers, Taylor launched her solo career with the 2005 album 11:11. That debut juxtaposed introspective tracks such as “Birmingham 1982” against brighter numbers like “One for the Shareholder,” an approach that also reflected the meticulous songcraft of Carole King and Laura Nyro. Taylor’s second solo effort, Lynn Teeter Flower, arrived two years later and further examined the 1970s singer/songwriter aesthetic, while Savannah Drive in 2008 documented her acoustic collaborations with Andy LeMaster. Maintaining steady output, Taylor issued LadyLuck the next year and simultaneously prepared another Azure Ray album, Drawing Down the Moon, which surfaced in 2010. Even after Azure Ray’s reunion, both artists continued solo work, with Taylor releasing her fourth album, Overlook, in 2011 and Something About Knowing two years later. In the Next Life, which appeared in 2016, found Taylor reflecting on the pleasures and wistful undercurrents of a more stable existence.
Albums
