Dead Heads might have skipped showers and peddled grilled cheese for weeks at a time but Wendy Woo is proof that the community of travelers was as creative as it was ragtag.
Woo, 34, releases her sixth album at The Soiled Dove June 26. But this singer-songwriter who evokes rabid devotion among fans first learned to play guitar while traveling with the Dead.
We caught up with Woo at her home in Denver’s Baker neighborhood to find out how far she’s come since then:
Q: Why does listening to “Angels Laughing” feel like I’m reading your diary?
A: My first five records were chapter-oriented. Each one represented that period in my life. “Angels in the Crowd,” is ballads and stories. “Wide Awake and Dreaming” is more jazzy influenced. “Ecolalia” is a poetry album with my father, Bataan Faigao.
“Gonna Wear Red” is more poppy, but also kind of a rebirth album. My mom got sick with cancer in 2000. The past two years of her life was a very creative time. She was painting and encouraged me to do the poetry album.
“Walking the Skyline” from 2004 (reflected that) I had just moved to Denver so it was kind-of a love song to the city. I took all my favorite songs from the five, and about four new songs, to makes this live record.
Q: The CD includes recordings done in Boulder, Fort Collins and Nederland. Does your music just sound better at higher altitudes?
A: I was trying to go for small, intimate venues. Each place – Avogadro’s Number in Fort Collins, The Trilogy Lounge in Boulder and Acoustic Coffee House in Nederland – was very tiny and very packed. For a live recording, I wanted it to be intimate enough that I could see the audience.
Q: Does it ever feel “low tech,” playing acoustic guitar in this era of electronic sampling and hyper-produced radio music?
A: It is interesting because the popular thing now is techno music and rap music, and I love that stuff. My first five albums are actually very produced, so this was an opportunity to get more raw. I did work with Trina Shoemaker last year, and she’s worked with Sheryl Crow and Queens of the Stone Age. We only did one song, “Hold On,” but I haven’t released it yet. I love big productions, but it’s not like I’m missing out. This is just something different.
Staff writer Elana Ashanti Jefferson can be reached at 303-820-1957 or ejefferson@denverpost.com.
