Rising Stars: Meet Annie Bacon

Today we’d like to introduce you to Annie Bacon. They and their team shared their story with us below:

Annie Bacon is a writer and songwriter living in Ann Arbor, Michigan (via Maine and San Francisco). With her OSHEN she merges a literary writing style and folk-rock Americana sound to create rich and emotionally complex music.

After surviving (with all of you) a global pandemic while grieving multiple deaths, Bacon emerges in 2024 with a host of creative works revolving around grief. Storm – her 4th full-length record – was recorded to analog tape in Nashville over four days at Daylight Studio with friend and studio owner Paul Defiglia (Avett Brothers, Langhorn Slim, Erin Rae) who also co-produced the album with Bacon, drummer Anson Hohne, and guitarist Thomas Bryan Eaton.

The songs cover a range of losses from the keening depths of death’s grip, to the ragged edges of love lost. Each of the 14 tracks creates a universe of its own, but the album orbits in its entirety, drawing listeners in through the screaming opening number “Secret Broken Heart” down into the tenderest depths of despair and back out to the lighthearted closer “Worry.”

It’s a deeply personal work that manages to bridge the universal experience of grief, and it is dripping with the community: the album was funded by a host of Indiegogo backers, the cover features a community altar with items sent from around the US, and the track “Dance” has the names of 172 ghosts whispered into it, each one sent to Bacon from family, friends, and fans.

With her OSHEN (a rotating cast) she has recorded four albums (one live) and three EPs, all comfortably in the folk-rock and Americana orbits. Her songs have been featured in film and commercials, and have earned her nominations from Independent Music Awards (Finalist/Americana), Great River Folk Festival (Top 3 Finalist), and International Songwriting Competition (Semifinalist x2).

She also composed a Folk Opera, (adapted by Alphabet Arts as a verse-puppet play for their Puppets & Poets Festival at the Bushwick Theatre in Brooklyn, NY in 2013); appeared in a small role in Taylor Mac’s genius “24 Hours of Popular Music” shows in New York and San Francisco; coordinated and created the title track for the For A Better Life compilation which raised funds for Immigrant Families Together; coordinated the San Francisco and Southeast Michigan chapters of the Nashville Songwriters’ Association; has worked as a music journalist (KQED, She Shreds, MetroTimes Detroit); co-wrote an original full-length musical.

The Keeper, with collaborator Kyle Rasche (Chain of Lakes) which is currently in workshops; and is working on a novel on themes of motherhood & war. She doesn’t sleep enough, but she does love the Michigan music scene very much.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m most known for my nuanced and complex emotional songwriting. Narrative, yes. But mostly each song is a portrait of deep feeling dug up from the depths of experience. I am most proud of hearing comments like this from listeners: “I feel like this song was made just for me” and “You made me cry. I don’t cry.”

Anytime the songs are reaching someone and witnessing an experience they might struggle to put into words I feel like I’ve done my job. What sets me apart is a relentless continuation on the path as well as an earnestness born from how much I need to make art in order to survive. At the moment I’m gearing up to release (June 14) a new album born out of death, divorce, and other loss. The songs all revolve around grief.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
Connecting with listeners and audiences. The music is made to connect. If I miss that mark, none of the rest of it matters. So when I have an experience where the connection is strong, that’s success.

Sometimes it’s three people in a bar. Sometimes it’s a thousand people who saw my song in the end credits of a movie. Doesn’t matter the number of people. It’s all about the connection.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.anniebacon.me
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/theanniebacon
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/theanniebacon
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/theanniebacon
• SoundCloud: www.soundcloud.com/anniebacon
• Other: www.anniebaconandheroshen.bandcamp.com

Image Credits
Cybelle Codish (@cybellecodish) and Jamie Harmon (@amuricaphoto)