Waterlines,
Release date
March 26, 2021
Author-turned-songwriter Zoe FitzGerald Carter is pleased to announce the release of her new album, Waterlines, featuring ten original songs and some of the finest musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Ranging in style from folk to funk, the tracks share a vivid sense of language and a lively, literary approach to storytelling. Zoe’s background as a journalist, essayist and author is reflected in the album’s intimate, autobiographical feel. The title of the album, Waterlines, refers to writing itself, she says. “But also evokes the way we look for clues from the past. Like tracing the watermarks where a river has flooded or been depleted.”
Whether struggling to break free from an ex-lover’s words (“These Words”), lamenting the fate of a teenage friend (“Only Girl”) or railing against the restrictive societal messages aimed at girls (“I Wanna Be A Teenage Boy”) Zoe’s lyrics and sensual, earthy voice pull her listeners onto emotionally resonant, wryly humorous territory.
“Zoe’s writing talent is boundless,” says Waterlines producer Jeffrey Wood (Fantasy Records). “Her stories captivate even before you add the music. Each song is like a film. It takes you on a journey. And her voice is mesmerizing – crystalline, clear and cool.”
(And the Reviews Are In!! Read what the press has to say about Waterlines: Press)
Listen to Waterlines Here.
The album features a rich array of top Bay Area musicians, including drummer Dawn Richardson (formerly of 4 Non Blondes and Tracy Chapman’s touring band), keyboardist Julie Wolf (Ani DeFranco), trumpet/flugelhorn player Erik “Mr. Tasty” Jekabson (John Mayer), bass player Paul Olguin (famed Bay Area sideman), and guitarist extraordinaire Michael Papenburg, who soars on the album’s funk-infused feminist anthem “ Teenage Boy.”
Opening with a quartet of quieter, folk-influenced songs (“Better Things to Do,” “Below the Waterline,” “Owl in Kensington” and “Only Girl”), the album shifts to the incantatory “On the Raft,” followed by the Latinesque “Like A Drum.” Expanding further afield are two laid-back and sensuous, trumpet-inflected jazz tunes (“These Words,” “Saturday Man”) a classic country ballad (“One Too Many Days in Nashville”), and the sassy bass-driven rocker, “Teenage Boy,” inspired by the Kavanaugh hearings.
“My musical roots are firmly planted in Folk and Americana,” Zoe says, “but the last couple of years I’ve been exploring new musical terrain, including Brazilian and jazz. The stylistic arc of the album reflects that evolution, which was beautifully handled by the musicians involved. Recording the album was collaborative and absurdly fun. It also provided a much-needed distraction from this terrible year. It’s my fervent hope that the political and pandemic-related horrors of 2020 will be firmly behind us when the album drops -- and we will once again be able to play and listen to live music.”
Long Bio
Zoe grew up in Washington D.C. with family roots in the sugarcane fields of Louisiana, a topic she has written about in both essays and songs. She’s been playing guitar since her father gave her his Guild 12-string when she was thirteen, prompting her to abruptly abandon the violin, an instrument she’d been studying since toddlerhood.
But while music was her first love, journalism was her first career. A graduate of Columbia Journalism School, Zoe has written for numerous national magazines (The New York Times, Newsweek, Vogue) and, in 2010, published an award-winning memoir, Imperfect Endings. Throughout this time, she was quietly honing her craft as a singer, songwriter, and guitar player, even when her main audience was her two young daughters, both of whom learned to sing a mean harmony.
After leaving New York City for the Bay Area, she began playing with various local bands – Bear Flag Republic, Raven’s Way, Do Wrong Right, The Deadliners, Rolling Thunder (a Bob Dylan cover band), and Sugartown, an Americana string band that found a large and enthusiastic audience for their yearly “Day of the Dead” concerts featuring songs by recently departed musical greats.
In 2018, Sugartown released an LP of Zoe’s original songs, Waiting for the Earthquake. “The album’s direct and piercing lyrics pull no punches and it’s haunting melodies are perfectly suited to Zoe’s rich and evocative voice,” said award-winning producer, Monica Pasqual.
“I’ve spent my life writing,” Zoe says. “But the thing I love most about songwriting is how economical it is. Like short stories minus the extra prose.”
Her new album, Waterlines, which dropped March 26, 2021, features ten original songs and some of the finest musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Short Bio
Singer/songwriter Zoe FitzGerald Carter began playing guitar and singing as a teenager in Washington D.C. where her father was a well-known jazz drummer. In addition to her busy career as a writer and teacher, she’s played and performed with numerous Bay Area bands, including the all-journalist band, The Deadliners, and the Dylan-inspired, Rolling Thunder. Her first album (Waiting for the Earthquake) was released in 2018 and featured her longtime Americana string band, Sugartown, a staple at Bay Area clubs. Her new album, Waterlines, features ten new songs written in a range of musical styles from folk to funk and showcases some of the Bay Area’s top musicians. In addition to recording, writing and performing, she teaches memoir and songwriting and has recently taken up the drums.
“Zoe’s writing talent is boundless. Her stories captivate even before you add the music. Each song is like a film. It takes you on a journey. And her voice is mesmerizing – crystalline, clear and cool.”
— Producer Jeffrey Wood (Fantasy Records)
Find Zoe FitzGerald Carter Online:
Author: www.zoefitzgeraldcarter.com
Music: Zoefitzgeraldmusic.com (site to come)
Band site: www.sugartownmusic.net
Facebook: www.facebook.com/zoe.f.carter
For all press inquiries, please contact Maggie Poulos:
Maggie@mixtape-media.com