Sara Swenson - Never Left My Mind

A year after releasing her second full-length record that garnered both strong positive reviews and a prime time television placement last spring, Kansas City's Sara Swenson is putting forth another project - an EP that showcases her fast, catchy, optimistic side and features her backing band,The Pearl Snaps. "Part of the fun of making this CD was watching a more upbeat side come into Sara's cache of songs. Make no mistake, the power-ballads are still there, but so are some more rock influences," producer Mike Crawford said. "The bridge of 'Windows and Doors' feels a little like The Clash backing Amie Mann...so good! The bridge of 'Never Left My Mind' is pure 4-on-the-floor, fist-pumping fun. "The band is rocking and Sara continues to put together heartfelt lyrics that engage me on a some- times emotional, sometimes spiritual level...the combination of all these things makes for an excellent little record!" Crawford said. The five songs were recorded during the summer of 2011 - four under the production of Crawford and one with Beau Davidson. All songs were written by Swenson, while her backing band,The Pearl Snaps (Ian Davidson, John Flynn, Brandon Graves, Sarah Magill and Roger Strong) filled out the ar- rangements with various electric, acoustic and slide guitars, mandolin, piano, bass, drums and back- ground vocals. "Sara's songs are refreshingly genuine (like Sara herself), and my fellow Snaps bring a sense of honesty alongside their wide and various musical talents. And then there's the sonic imagination of producer Mike Crawford, which took us in some unexpected but oh-so-happy directions," Magill said. With each of her projects, Swenson's goal has been to create music that is worth the attention of listeners, combining solid and interesting musical parts with lyrics that matter."Never Left My Mind," enabled her to do that while trying out some new approaches and sounds. "Making this record was energizing for me. It was so much fun to be working on songs that made me want to bounce around in the studio, while also re- ally believing in the lyrics behind them. It feels really good to be getting out some music like that, as well as a couple more affirming and brooding slower tunes," Swenson said.