1. How did you meet?
Kate: Anna and I me through a mutual friend who thought two artistically-inclined lesbians would get along :)
2. Your new album is called ‘How To Hold’ - what does the title mean to you?
Kate: Before going into the studio for six months, our band-mates sat around our living room staring at a blank piece of paper on the wall. We were figuring out which songs we wanted to capture the essence of in the studio, or completely re-invent. One song which everyone agreed on was “Slow Down With Me.” This intimate love-song is about the scary process of staying in the present when you are falling in love. A lyric in that song became our album title; “Holding on is learning how to hold” became “How to Hold.” This title encapsulated the themes of duets about queer romance, and our anthemic songs about community, normalizing resistance and fighting for each other- instead of with each other. Making this album in 2017 was also a poignant reminder; sometimes the best way to hold on is to hold onto each other.
3. How do you describe your music?
Anna: Our music was always born out of poetry. The spoken word community graciously told us our music had a home and we grew from there. We borrow from the past while always looking forward, aiming to create music that is new, fresh and easy to hum to.
4. Who are some of your influences?
Anna: We idolize jazz masters like Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday and game changers like Joni Mitchell and Tracy Chapman. We pay homage to contemporaries like Brandi Carlile, Ingrid Michaelson and Regina Spektor. Anna grew up with every Beatles album playing as her life's soundtrack, while Kate would lose herself to the honesty and harmonies of the Indigo Girls.
5. What is the last good book you read (or film or theater piece or museum exhibit you saw etc)?
Kate: In terms of theater, we have been deeply moved by the work of the Bengsons @ New York Theatre Workshop/The Public, La MaMa’s own Amy Surratt and MOTUS, and various spoken-word and theatre artists from Poetic Theater Productions. Artists from PTP who have been very influential for us include Lauren Whitehead, presently touring with Bill T Jones’ opera We Shall Not Be Moved and Timothy Du White, who is an artist in residence at Dixon Place.
6. What does working at La MaMa mean to you?
Kate: La MaMa has been challenging and nurturing artists for over a half-century. We are both indebted to that history, and deeply informed by the present community-building La MaMa still brings to the table. We have felt so blessed to become a part of the La MaMa family, from opening for NickyLand to our work with the amazing Yoshiko Chuma. On the brink of a bit of an artistic debut, releasing our album, La MaMa was our dream venue: as an artistic home in NYC, as a thrilling cultural lineage to join in on, and as a stunning space for our audience. We are so thrilled to be headlining a night at La MaMa, and are forever grateful!
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La MaMa presents
Anna/Kate Band
“How To Hold”
Album Release Concert
Anna Gothard - ukelele, vocals
Kate Foster - vocals
Mark Harad-Oaks - bass, guitar
Kelly Wenof House - banjo, guitar, bass
Bryan Clark - drums
Temi Hason - cello
Special Opening Act: Dane Terry
Friday, March 23, 2018 - 7PM
The Downstairs @ La MaMa
66 East 4th Street
(between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003
Tickets: $25 Adults; $20 Students/Seniors
For Info & Tickets: CLICK HERE
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