Tennessee folk/country singer-songwriter Teni Rane releases her debut long player, Goldenrod, exploring the concept of change without losing one’s sense of self.
Rane explains, “Penned at a time when a multitude of changes made life feel like every piece and part of me was up for re-negotiation, the collection of songs presented in ‘Goldenrod’ explores what it means to make progress through life without erasing the lessons and emotions of the past and present. Holding space for knowing and loving myself for who I am and where I am, while also leaving room for all the places and versions of myself that have existed in my life up to now and will exist in the future. With imagery inspired largely by the shoulder season ‘as the summer fades into fall,’ the conversations, stories, and emotions explored on the tracks of ‘Goldenrod’ are relatable: change, loss, fear, identity, loss of identity, strength.”
Goldenrod was recorded at Classic Recording Studio with GRAMMY-nominated engineer, Mike Stephenson co-producing alongside Rane. Additional collaborators include GRAMMY-nominees Dave Eggar (cello, piano) and Phil Faconti (acoustic, electric, baritone, classical guitars and ukulele) as well as past collaborator Roger Gustafsson (bass, steel guitar), and Rane’s own partner Jonathan Shumaker (bass).
In 2020, Rane released her EP, Heart in Tennessee, followed by taking up a musical residency at Kneippbyn Resort Visby on the beautiful Swedish island Gotland in the Baltic Sea. While there, she recorded four singles at Sandkvie Studios, including “Meet Me in Stockholm,” an invitation from a homesick Rane to her best friend.
Made up of eleven tracks, entry points on Goldenrod include opener, “Firefly,” a creamy, graceful song akin to a prayerful petition for simplicity, featuring Rane’s delicious voice with sibilant nuances.
“Firefly, you fly so low / When you rise – where do you go? / Firefly, when you look at me / Can you tell I’m lonely?”
The title track poses a philosophical question: “what does change really change?” Laced by a gorgeous cello and softly textured layers, Rane allows her vocals to spread and envelope the lyrics in wistful poignancy.
Dipped in gentle tenderness, “Here to Stay (Rough)” merges folk with classical elegance, offering an emotionally affecting melody, at once warm yet with tints of elusive aching sensations. Talking about the song, Rane reveals, “‘Here to Stay’ gives room for ‘both.’ Life is always both – hard and soft; light and heavy; simple and complex. The tough face we show to the world is often protecting something that feels fragile and breakable inside.”
A personal favorite because of its yearning ambiance, “Small Steps” sees Rane employing her oh-so beautiful voice like a psalmist, reaching for the strength to move forward in an aura of love and joy. Whereas the drifting, elegiac “Return to Dust” probes the inevitable finality of life painted in wisps of hope.
The sole cover on the album, Rane’s rendition of Rowland Salley’s “Killing The Blues” saturates the song in the anguish of loneliness and the necessity of picking up the pieces.
“I’m guilty of something / I hope you never do because there is nothing / Sadder than losing yourself in love.”
Gut wrenchingly sublime, on her debut album, Teni Rane stirs listeners with the nameless desire to embrace life in its entirety.
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Teni Rane on Tour:
8/09 – Asheville, NC – Arbor Evenings @ The Arboretum
8/10 – Horse Shoe, NC – House Concert
8/16 – Bristol TN/VA – Radio Bristol – Appalachian Travels
8/17 – Norton, VA – High Knob Fest (performing w/ Dave Eggar & Bristol Lightning)
8/20 – Emory, VA – WEHC 90.7 (Appalachian Artists Live)
9/19 – Chattanooga, TN – House Concert*
9/20 – Red Bank, TN – Food Truck Fridays*
9/21 – Chattanooga, TN – Crabtree Farms Fall Festival*
9/21 – Chattanooga, TN – Gate 11*
9/22 – Chattanooga, TN – Creative Discovery Museum – Songwriter’s Residency
9/27 – Kingsport, TN – House Concert
9/28 – Knoxville, TN – WDVX Blue Plate Special (12pm)
9/29 – Chattanooga, TN – Creative Discovery Museum – Songwriter’s Residency
10/2 – Fayetteville, AR – U of A Honors College House Concert*
10/4 – Neosho, MO – House Concert*
10/5 – Joplin, MO – North Heights Porch Fest*
10/12 – Chattanooga, TN – Highland Park Porch Fest
10/23 – Stanton, KY – The Hive at High Rock
10/24 – Newport, KY – Falcon Theatre – Poet & Song Series
*Trio show
