Carolyn Striho shares messages of hope and strength on “I Will Rise.” Photo – Chelsea Whitaker Photography
Carolyn Striho wants to help people rise to the occasion.
The Detroit singer-songwriter captures that empowering sentiment on her latest rock single, “I Will Rise.”
“I wrote ‘I Will Rise’ after the 2017 Women’s March to invoke hope, especially after having had breast cancer, but to connect with all people,” Striho said.
“With so much competition and anger among people, it focuses on love and survival. It also shares messages of hope and strength and encourages people to come together.”
Surrounded by determined piano, acoustic guitar, synth, bass, and drums, Striho sings, “I will rise, my friends, and be alive / We will rise through the pain in our disguise / Smiling instead of crying / It’s so hard we’re trying / Every day is counting time.”
“People would hear it and they liked it. You could see it as a political song or a song about breast cancer and women, but I realized it could be for anybody,” she said.
“I start out by singing, ‘I will rise, my sisters,’ and then I change it to more of a universal reference with the lyric, ‘I will rise, my friends.’”
Carolyn Striho performs at Scuderie Aldobrandini in Frascati, Italy. Photo courtesy of Carolyn Striho
For Carolyn Striho, a clear, wintry night sky evokes feelings of enchantment.
The Detroit singer-songwriter captures that spellbinding sensation on her latest instrumental single, “Piano Moon.”
“There’s something about playing in A minor on the piano; it’s just one of my favorite ways to write songs. It’s what I was doing with a 3/4 time signature, and I was starting to write that as I heard the melody line,” said Striho, who penned her single in Detroit and Fiuggi, Italy.
“I liked it so much as an instrumental. I had it written out, and it needed something, so this winter I came up with that dramatic middle part. It was also during the holiday season, and I was thinking of Trans-Siberian Orchestra and that dramatic, dark classical feel.”
On “Piano Moon,” she brings that symphonic piano to life alongside wistful cello, haunting electric guitar, and glistening percussion. Part of the song’s inspiration also comes from “Bear Dance” by Béla Bartók.
“I used to play it, and it’s amazing and super avant-garde. It’s a difficult piece, and my mom loved it, too,” Striho said. “She would hear me play it, and I worked hard on that.”
Striho wanted to recapture that magical feeling while recording “Piano Moon” at Inner Door Music with Jason Charboneau (cello), husband Scott Dailey (electric guitar), and Ron Wolf (percussion).
“We had talked about putting violin on it, but when Jason came over and was doing the cello, it was just this moment of inspiration,” she said.
“‘Piano Moon’ is a fierce, yet soft song with a melody line that is memorable, and it unfolds with desire and raw strength,” said Striho, who’s shared a new video for the single. “It will be released later in a second version with vocals.”
Striho is also performing her new music at several live shows with Dailey, including June 8 at the Nor-East’r Music & Art Festival in Mio, Michigan, June 23 with The Orbitsuns at Cadieux Café in Detroit, and July 21 with the Don Was Detroit All Star Revue for the Concert of Colors at the Detroit Institute of Arts.
“We have some great summer shows bringing our eclectic blend of new music,” she said. “We’re excited for Nor-East’r this weekend; for our full-band matinee show with Jason, John Barron, and Todd Glass and The Orbitsuns; and at the amazing Concert of Colors with the wonderful Don Was Detroit All Star Revue.”
In those fleeting moments, the Detroit singer-songwriter feels grateful and inspired while spending time with others.
However, that magic often dissipates as people move on or pass away, but the love and appreciation from those interactions remain with Striho.
She beautifully shares that sentiment and a longing to recapture it in her new single, “Blue Ridiculous Love,” which features poetic lyrics and heartfelt rock instrumentation.
“I saw this song more as a painting, and with a painting, you’re interpreting it your way,” said Striho, who co-wrote the track with husband-guitarist Scott Dailey. “I’m talking about the ‘green grass of gold dirt,’ and it reminds me of one of the Beatnik poets, and you get these images.”
Surrounded by eager acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and drums, Striho sings, “I had this magic / It’s right on my side / Then everybody took a ride / The evening shadows / The tiny voice in my head / Starts talking louder / It’s an evil eye.”
“It’s a romantic song with an angst about the future and missing people, but it’s also about how falling in love can feel ridiculous,” she said.
”The lyric, ‘Everybody took a ride,’ could mean different things: They just left your life or they could have died. I had this magic, and I thought, ‘Wait, where did everybody go?’ It prompts you to look back and say, ‘Wait a minute, those people are gone.’”
Carolyn Striho and Scott Dailey focus on the journey ahead on their latest single.
For Carolyn Striho, the road of life is full of unexpected twists and turns.
But those challenges don’t prevent the Detroit singer-songwriter from moving forward.
That perseverance fuels some of the inspiration behind her latest blues-rock single, “14 Miles of Bad Road,” with husband/guitarist Scott Dailey.
“If you say you’ve been on 14 miles of bad road, it sounds far. When I wrote it, I was thinking more of being up north with roads all over the place,” Striho said. “When you think about it, it could be anywhere—a city or a town.”
Determined to reach their next destination, she sings alongside propulsive electric guitar, bass, organ, and drums, “I wish all the world could see you and me again / I wish all the world could feel like a friend again / I wish all the world could be like a kid again / I wish all the world … / I tried, my friend / You lied again / I tried again / You lied …”
“Scott came up with the lyrics, ‘I tried, my friend / You lied again,’ and it makes sense, meaning, ‘You thought there was a rosy picture of life, and when you’re young, everything seems so good,’” said Striho, who shares counterpoint vocals with Dailey on the track’s chorus.
“You also might think someone’s going to swoop in and make everything better if life’s not going well. That doesn’t always happen, though.”
“The Ark will be a very special show for me. It’s my only show on the Michigan leg of the Analog tour where I’ll play through the entire song cycle as it is on [my new] album, [Like a Moth],” said Cocco, who now resides in Whangārei, New Zealand and performs under the moniker Science for Sociopaths.
“I’m [also] ridiculously stoked about this [Music Mavens of Michigan] lineup. Tin Roof Detroit has a capacity of 400 people, and we’re hoping to reach it! With a lineup like this, I think we can. We’ll be holding what’s called round robins with each artist offering two self-accompanied songs and sharing the stage with three to four artists at a time.”
“Even if you’ve seen any or all of these artists live, this will be a truly unique and collaborative experience,” said Cocco, who grew up in Sterling Heights. “We’ll also have a couple of youth performers to open the show and a finale featuring all participating artists, plus an open jam to end.”
I recently spoke to Cocco about living in New Zealand, visiting the U.S., working with Girls Rock Detroit, preparing for The Ark and Music Mavens of Michigan shows, writing and recording her Like a Moth album and looking ahead to 2024.
Erin Zindle & The Ragbirds honor a late friend’s memory and his determination to overcome addiction on the new single, “Liquor Store.” It’s the latest release in a series of new singles from the band, which includes Shannon Wade, Erin Zindle, Loren Kranz, and TJ Zindle. Photo courtesy of Erin Zindle & The Ragbirds
Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on the Ann Arbor District Library’s Pulpblog.
The bluesy new single from the Ann Arbor folk-rock band addresses the daily struggle Nelson Whitehorse faced while trying to fight addiction and follow a path to recovery.
“He was from St. Louis actually and moved to Ann Arbor to be in a band with me, and we lived together for a year,” said Zindle about Whitehorse, who passed away several years ago. “We lived on the west side of Ann Arbor and he had been an alcoholic since childhood.”
Throughout “Liquor Store,” Erin Zindle and bandmates TJ Zindle (electric and acoustic guitar, vocals), Loren Kranz (drums, vocals), and Shannon Wade (bass, vocals) chronicle Whitehorse’s ongoing challenge of having to walk past a liquor store each day to visit the local Alano Club.
Ominous keys and drums follow Zindle as she sings, “You said ‘Grace is new every morning’ / As you stared into your black coffee cup / Today you’re gonna make it past the liquor store / To get to the Alano Club.”
“I saw that battle play out over and over every day, and sometimes he made it, and sometimes he didn’t,” she said. “The daily work is just getting there every day.”
The band opted to release “Liquor Store” on September 14, which coincides with National Sober Day, to celebrate sobriety and raise awareness about addiction.
The track also helps Whitehorse’s family and friends to take comfort in his memory as a “hilarious, loyal, giant-hearted friend” as Zindle noted in a Ragbirds’ Facebook post.
“The message I hope people will take away is that today you’re going to make it,” Zindle said. “It literally is just that one day at a time. I’m so grateful that the song came to me, and it came with that wisdom to know not to add any message to it.”
We recently spoke to Zindle about the band’s new single, its strategy for releasing new songs and an upcoming album, the inspiration behind several tracks, the creative process for writing and recording them, a Halloween show at The Ark, and additional plans for new material.
The July edition of “The Soundcheck” celebrates the concept of summer through different emotions and experiences—love, authenticity, remembrance, nostalgia and connection. It’s time to think about “Your New Favorite Lover” while you “Stay Behind The Wheel” and later arrive at your destination and receive a warm greeting of Welcome to Pookie’s. There’s also a need to reflect on the life and love of “Willow” and remember what’s For Debbie.
Rhythmic drums, gleaming electric guitar, humming bass and romantic piano wrap listeners in a heated embrace alongside frontman Josh Clemens’ fervent vocals.
He sings, “Ooooh I’m not trying to hide / What you see is what you get / Now you’re the owner of this wreck / Honestly, what did you expect of me / You only get the best of me / You’re begging for the rest of me / Honey, you’re not ready, but come and get it now.”
The track’s infectious, sensual groove is guaranteed to captivate new and current Strange Heart fans. Drummer Bobby Jankowski, bassist-vocalist Mike Schneider, lead guitar-vocalist Mike Leslie and Clemens have won me over, and I know they’ll delight you as well.
Strange Heart also blazes on stage with an eight-piece band (complete with horns), so check them out July 20 at The Whitney in Detroit and July 22 at Eastern Palace Club in Hazel Park.
Carolyn Striho personally narrates her new audiobook for “Detroit (Maiden Energy).” Photo – Jacx Art
Carolyn Striho beautifully relives her poignant written words in a refreshing fashion.
The Detroit rock singer-songwriter personally narrates a new compelling audiobook version of Detroit (Maiden Energy), her 2019 intimate, eloquent collection of song lyrics and poetry.
Now available via Google Play, iTunes, Apple Books, Nook, Scribd and Audible, Striho’s latest release commemorates the one-year anniversary of Detroit (Maiden Energy)’s print version from Aquarius Press/AUXmedia. It features Striho reciting 28 selections from her expansive 50-piece “street princess” collection in a compact 41-minute audiobook.
“I recorded them with me reading over two days in the summer at the home studio while Scott (Dailey) engineered. I sang a couple of lines on some of the songs. It was very different to hear myself reading the poems. It was not that different from a song, in some respect, when I sing in the studio,” Striho said.
“But I felt more self-conscious as they were ‘naked’ and not being talked to or sang with music behind them. As I love hearing and watching poets read, I know it could turn out really well. We had thought about doing music behind it with some guitar and piano, but it felt really organic and natural to just read.”
The Stratton Setlist 