Vannatta Writers In Arms CD

Yet the words and tunes she fuses are never so straightforward. While her first album, Cathartic, was intentionally dark and cryptic, Cat's latest release, None Of Those Things, attempts to strike a more accessible balance between her fondness for double meanings and a dedication to candor, if often disguised. Using simple words, she repeatedly leads the listener to one idea and then drives the opposite conclusion home.

The title track invites the audience to pine for lost loves, for lost paths and for lost friends because "None of those things quite existed anyway". The theme of Tricky is suggested by its name and underlined by its chorus ("You just can't deny that look in your eye / It's love and it's here to stay / Don't you dare lie, just confess so that I / Can pack my bags and be on my way"). Even the final words of the album, the denouement of Pocket Full Of Sand, nearly placate but are ultimately shrouded ("I can't leave you / I can't leave you / And how could I leave you / You're already gone").

Although subject matter, instrumentation and patron may change, this contradictory approach continues to mold Cat's style. Whether composing a biographical song for the next album or scoring a short film for a Hollywood director, whether performing for a crowd sipping champagne or a mob tossing beer bottles, Cat can confidently bond a hopeful outlook with a gloomy muse. And the juxtaposition is proof of a flexible and fearless talent.

With her album None Of Those Things sitting tight in her pocket, accolades from a Hollywood film festival tucked beneath her cap and nothing less than a finalist ranking in two separate international songwriting competitions stowed up her sleeve, Cat is a versatile musician who is as comfortable on stage as behind the scenes. Cat Jahnke's capacity for musical evolution has been clear since day one, and her horizons have never looked brighter.