Preview

Synhwyrus' - dyna'r gair i ddisgrifio'r gantores o faledwraig Oh Suzanna. Ei henw go iawn yw Suzie Ungerleider a daeth i fri ar ôl rhyddhau ei thrydedd crynoddisg, Sleepy Little Sailor (2001).

Canu tebyg i Sinead O'Connor, Iris De Ment a Tom Waits. Canu emosiynol sy'n tynnu'r gynulleidfa i wrando.

Cyfunwch fywyd y mynyddoedd a'r Gorllewin Gwyllt, y trefi diwydiannol a chanu'r galon a dyna i chi Oh Suzanna.

Seren o unawdydd sy'n ennill ei lle ar lwyfannau'r Unol Daleithiau, Canada ac Ewrop.

Preview

Emotive' is a word frequently used to sum up this 31-year-old US-born (now Canadian based) singer-songwriter (real name Suzie Ungerleider). Her third CD, Sleepy Little Sailor (2001), has prompted rave press reviews and considerable airplay in the UK-Radio 2's Bob Harris is a fervent supporter. Stylistically likened to Sinead O'Connor, Iris DeMent, and Tom Waits, she sings in a voice of passion which transfixes and transports her audience. Her material reflects her belief that folk music, punk, rock, and rock'n'roll are all linked; Suzie's songs range from the emotionally harrowing to pure celebration, perhaps with an Otis Redding cover thrown in for good measure. In concert, she connects her audience to life in the hills, in the wild west, in old industrial towns and in the heart, as seen through her eyes.

Suzie has played more than 150 shows in the last 12 months in the US, Canada, and Europe, including gigs supporting alt-country rockers Wilco, The Jayhawks, and Steve Earle. As part of her third UK tour, Oh Susanna appears at Tregaron solo. Expect an intimate evening of totally absorbing songcraft delivered with passion by a woman whose star is definitely on the rise.

Writeups

'A voice ... that is genuinely affecting. It has an emotive quality ... She pulls the heartstrings'. - Bob Harris, BBC Radio 2

'Haunting and lyrical, bared and emotive songcraft' - Time Out

'A remarkable, crystalline voice' - Observer

' **** ' - Q

Review

For many of us, the Festival's highlight night featured Oh Susanna and Elizabeth Ryder. This co-billing of two extraordinary voices drew a healthy audience, who were completely absorbed from start to finish - you could have heard a pin drop. Elizabeth's opening set, with John Eyre on second guitar, showcased her confident harp and guitar work, but above all her crystalline voice, on a nicely varied set of original and traditional material; she reaches for and achieves high register notes that most, perhaps more seasoned, performers just wouldn't risk. She's playing some prestigious folk festivals this summer, which should serve to eradicate any lingering folkclub affectations, and with an audacious debut CD under her belt, a career on the British folk scene beckons. By contrast, Oh Susanna (a.k.a. Suzie Ungerleider) employs a guitar technique that's minimal yet tasteful, often fading to near-silence to underpin her emotion-drenched, quintessentially transatlantic voice. In a lengthy set, she delivered all our favourite songs from the 'Johnstown' and 'Sleepy Little Sailor' CD's, and beguiled us with the warmth of her stage presence. She's frequently branded with the catch-all 'alt-country' tag, but it fails to convey her appeal - of the current crop of American singer-songwriters, she's as good as they come: her sisterhood is never strident, her emotive songs have universal appeal, and her stage act is an essay in 'less is more'. She happily sold and signed a cartload of CDs, and made many firm new friends in Tregaron. You can expect to see both Suzie and Elizabeth back in Tregaron next year, tour schedules permitting.