Biography
San Francisco chanteuse Noe Venable cultivated a devoted Bay Area audience through her sweet vocals, the intelligent craftsmanship of her songs, her affable stage persona, and the company of highly skilled musicians. Though she engaged with music from childhood, Venable derived no ease from the stiff formality of the piano recitals that shaped her early training, yet she found inspiration in classic rock acts such as the Who. Her initial foray into public performance took place onstage in the theater, where, as a remarkably young talent, she joined a production at age twelve under the direction of George Coates, the visionary creator of elaborate multimedia spectacles that earned him widespread recognition. During her university years, mono confined Venable to bed rest, prompting her to pick up the guitar and compose material in a manner reminiscent of Ween’s eccentric downtime habits, despite sharing no stylistic overlap with that band. She refined her abilities through frequent open-mic appearances and a subsequent six-month stretch of street busking across Europe. After returning, she partnered with Tom Meshishnek to cut the quirky You Talkin' to Me? inside his home studio, where household items including pots, pans, and a candy machine supplied the percussion. The resulting lo-fi character drew the ear of producer Lee Townsend, known for his work with Bill Frisell, Pat Metheny, and John Scofield, who secured her a contract with the German imprint Intuition. No Curses Here appeared in 1998, highlighting Venable’s expressive, childlike vocals alongside her knack for blending folk, country, jazz, and pop into a cohesive, pleasurable, and remarkably polished adult-alternative album. Since that release she has maintained a demanding schedule of live work, whether fronting a full ensemble or a stripped-down trio of violin, bass, acoustic guitar, and voice, earned a Bammie nomination, and constructed a home studio within her living room. The same trio documented the live album Down Easy in 2000, one track of which appears in the film Cherish featuring Liz Phair and Robin Tunney.
Albums
