BONNIE WHITMORE LIVE IN ST. CHARLES AUG. 16 IN SUPPORT OF HER NEW "THERE I GO AGAIN" LP

Austin-based Americana singer-songwriter Bonnie Whitmore will be performing at the House Pub in St. Charles on Fri. Aug. 16 with Somebody's Darling. This show (and upcoming tour) is in support of Bonnie's recently released sophomore effort There I Go Again (out now through This Is American Music), an album that CMT EDGE recently stated, "follows her 2011’s Embers to Ashes with superb results.” In addition NO DEPRESSION also raved, “Bonnie Whitmore’s new album There I Go Again is a heady mix of modern Country and Mountain Music that so many singers coming out of Music Row have failed to achieve in the last 10 years. Ms. Whitmore can be assured that she won’t be Americana’s Best Kept Secret for much longer.”

Here's the local show info:
Fri. Aug. 16 BONNIE WHITMORE w/ Somebody’s Darling 9:30pm at The House Pub, 16 S Riverside Ave., St. Charles, IL (630) 945-3479  

HERE'S WHAT PEOPLE ARE ALREADY SAYING ABOUT BONNIE WHITMORE'S THERE I GO AGAIN:

“Bonnie Whitmore’s new There I Go Again follows 2011’s Embers to Ashes with superb results.” - CMT EDGE
 
“Bonnie Whitmore’s new album There I Go Again is a heady mix of modern Country and Mountain Music that so many singers coming out of Music Row have failed to achieve in the last 10 years. Americana right through to the core… Ms. Whitmore can be assured that she won’t be Americana’s Best Kept Secret for much longer.” - NO DEPRESSION
 
“A remarkably consistent batch of tough but tuneful songs. Please add Bonnie Whitmore from Denton, TX to your list of Excellent Country Women.” –  ROUTES & BRANCHES: KRFC RADIO

"Bonnie's voice effortlessly moves from sweet southern to smoldering and sultry as she belts out songs dealing with life, love and regrets.” – ATLANTA EXAMINER  

“There I Go Again is a huge step forward for Whitmore and her team. Flawless production aside, the strength of There I Go Again rests in Whitmore’s songwriting. It takes only one listen to create an ad hoc list of artists to cover each song with great success. If Embers to Ashes represented Whitmore’s tough-as-nails persona, There I Go Again showcases her artistic, soulful side. This is a definitely a statement album. She has made her album, her way. And this is why we love her and There I Go Again.” – BUCKET FULL OF NAILS
 
“On Whitmore’s song ‘Reckless and Young’ she could have wrapped it, put a bow on top and offered it to Tom Petty for his treatment of the laidback, devil-may-care song.” - DENTON RECORD CHRONICLE
 
"Bonnie Whitmore‘s second disc is crammed full of soulful, insistent Americana, with sharp-edged songs sometimes reminiscent of Tom Petty, delivered in a sure voice that’s both powerful and plaintive and throws in a touch of twang just when it feels most called for." - BLOG CRITICS
 
“Bonnie Whitmore is a purveyor of fine, fine Indie/Rock/Americana and she will blow your mind.” - BEARLY RAMBLING
 
“On Bonnie Whitmore’s new album There I Go Again she sings, "Borderline, Borderline, everything's fine 'til it's not." The borderline she walks, with a tread a good deal more surefooted than most sophomore-album artists can manage, is the one between familiarity and originality, planting solid footsteps on both sides.” - SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER

"A wonderfully personal album that kicks off with a riff that sounds like she reassembled Bob Dylan's first electric band. Loaded with songs that Stevie Nicks could have stolen and released as her next album, Whitmore is an original that understands the dictates of the commercial world serving up a nice pairing of both. Quite a smashing set." - MIDWEST RECORD
 
"I have two words for you this week: Bonnie Whitmore. Her new album There I Go Again has me hook, line, and sinker." - AUSTIN CHRONICLE
 
“Bonnie Whitmore’s There I Go Again is highly recommended if you enjoy the music of singers like Neko Case, Emmylou Harris and Bonnie Raitt.” - WHEN YOU MOTOR AWAY
 
"With a voice that goes from whispering softness to full throttle and alto to soaring soprano, and songs that plumb relationships with lyrics referencing Lewis Carroll, Hunter  S. Thompson and Radiohead, Bonnie Whitmore’s got Americana fans clamoring to hear her new work." - AUSTIN MONTHLY

 “The music and lyrics  of 'There I Go Again' are completely original but Whitmore's voice has overtones of Stevie Nicks, the Dixie Chicks and even Lucinda Williams at times.” – NO DEPRESSION

"Although her sultry Southern voice and country sound pay rightful homage to her roots, Whitmore's music reflects an angst all her own." - FLAGPOLE MAGAZINE
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Bonnie Whitmore's last album had a body count and a title, Embers to Ashes, that implied a fiery finality. There are broken bones and hard lessons learned on Whitmore's new album, but its title - There I Go Again - suggests less ominous themes.

"I feel like I've grown up a lot," she says. "I turned 30 this year, and I've been in the business 15 of those years. Songwriting as a profession is a humbling career choice. To write songs that are accessible and relatable as possible required a level of maturity and focus that I have strived to attain on this record. It’s a less self-indulgent record then Embers. Embers To Ashes was what I needed to get through that period of my life. There I Go Again is a celebration of success and failure. Plus, nobody wants to hear two breakup albums in a row."

Fittingly, the music also reflects a radiant change of direction. The rootsiness of Embers isn't absent, but the songs on There I Go Again  are decidedly less country sounding. Keyboards are played up in places a steel guitar might have inhabited, the drums are more prominent, and Whitmore lets her big voice run through some big, inviting choruses.

"We knew what we had in these songs," says Whitmore. "It's not the same Americana sound that we had with Embers. This one is a lot more put together, and I think it comes across as more polished. It's definitely a pop record, and everyone loves a good pop record."

She cites Tom Petty's ability to balance the earthiness of roots music with hooky pop parts as the model she aspired to on the album. "He makes these amazingly awesome pop songs, but is also able to keep them within the lines. You could hear how beautiful the melodies are beyond the grit of rock and roll," she says. "I struggle with the question - 'who inspired you?' - but Petty’s music has, and always will inspire me."

Whitmore also credits her parents, both the music they chose to play at home in Denton and on the radio, and also her father's band, which featured Whitmore starting at age 8, as well as her sister Eleanor.

By 15, Whitmore was playing professional gigs outside the family band. She played and sang in Hayes Carll's band for a while, and recently she spent quite a bit of time touring and recording with the Mastersons, the husband/wife band featuring sister Eleanor and Houston native and guitarist Chris Masterson.

They're good family to have: Both of them play on Whitmore's albums, which Masterson produced.

There have been tough gigs for Whitmore along the way. She went to Kickstarter to finance the new record. There she included a video with some footage from a particularly undesirable gig performing in a sports bar beneath the glow of a giant flat-screen TV.

"Those gigs can be hard to take," she says. "You’re playing three hours to a group of people that do not seem to realize you're there. It can be a humbling, disheartening experience."

But her album title speaks to a commitment to her music. "It seemed like a pretty good title for a second album," she says. "It provides a sense of diving into the deep and seeing if it floats. That's what an artist has to do when releasing music now. Nobody is really doing it for the money, we're doing this because we love it, and that's the only reason to do it at all. There's nothing else I'd rather do. Sometimes you have three people come out to a show sometimes you have 300. To me it’s simple. I play music because it’s what I do. Those who want to hear it are what makes it worth it." - andrew dansby

Bonnie Whitmore's There I Go Again is out now on CD and digital formats through This Is American Music.

FOR MORE INFO ON BONNIE WHITMORE:
http://www.bonniewhitmore.com




BONNIE WHITMORE (photo: Matt Lankes)

BONNIE WHITMORE SUMMER 2013 TOUR w/ SOMEBODY'S DARLING
8/11 - TBA, Houston, TX        
8/12 - Hi Ho, New Orleans, LA (w/ the Kid Carsons)
8/13 - The Basement, Nashville, TN     
8/14 - Downtown Tavern, Jackson, TN    
8/15 - TBD, St. Louis, MO    
8/16 - House Pub, St. Charles, IL    
8/17 - Tonic Room, Chicago, IL (w/ Steve Leaf Trio)
8/18 - MOTR, Cincinnati, OH    
8/19 - Purple Fiddle, Thomas, WV      
8/20 - Sunshine District, Washington, DC    
8/21 - TBA, Philadelphia, PA        
8/22 - Rockshop, Brooklyn, NY (w/ Charlotte Cornfield)
8/23 - Norfolk Taphouse, Norfolk, VA
8/24 - Hampton Taphouse, Hampton, VA    
8/25 - The Station at Southern Rail, Chapel Hill, NC    
8/26 - Radio Room, Greenville, SC    
8/27 - Preservation Pub, Knoxville, TN    
8/28 - The Earl, Atlanta, GA (w/ Tedo Stone)
8/29 - Iron City, Birmingham, AL (w/ Delicate Cutters)
8/30    Hey Joe's, Cleveland, MS
 (more dates to be announced soon)