Ms. Fridrich's Messy Ann Band
Sarah is a songwriter, professional piano teacher, and freelance musician..
how they became a band: In 2011, Sarah found Kirk on craigslist. In a short time, Kirk mastered the intricate drum parts off Sarah's first album (performed by drummer Daniel Marcellus), and the two went on tour across the country. Since then, the duo recorded and released 2 EPs and 2 singles, and completed 6 DIY tours, including a fan-funded tour across the country.
what about live shows: Sarah and Kirk thrive on energy, melody, and truth. Having performed in cavernous museums, rock clubs, living rooms, and outdoor festivals a like, they are always careful to "play-to-the-room" as they were taught to do by their jazz mentors.
Kirk is a professional drum teacher and freelance musician..
album artwork: three of the bands releases feature the artwork of Sarah Corwin. A native from the Maryland suburbs of D.C., Ms.Corwin now resides in Seattle, WA. Follow her on instagram to see more of her work: thescorwin
things we like: wind farms across Kansas, dissonant pop music, old pianos in used book stores. Also, spontaneous mountain dance parties make us want to sing and play drums in public squares, dive bars, arty coffee shops and your living room.
why the "messy ann band": the name is a play on that of one of Sarah's favorite 20th century composers - Olivier Messiaen, who incorporated bird song transcriptions into his music, which was also known for being rhythmically complex. Messiaen was an innovative composer, who was influenced by his spiritual life and his world travels.
Ms. Fridrich's Messy Ann Band is an indie rock band fronted by pianist, singer-songwriter Sarah Fridrich, who collaborates with jazz-trained drummer Kirk Kubicek, as well as various local singers & musicians. They create music that has been compared to Regina Spektor and the Dresden Dolls. Sarah and Kirk strive to create catchy, off-kilter songs that are doused in rich harmonies and energized with rhythmic interplay between the piano and drums.
In addition to being an accomplished teacher, Sarah has produced two albums of her original songs: 2007 self-titled EP, and 2011 full length CD entitled "You Call That Brave". In 2009, she was awarded an Individual Artist Grant by the Montgomery County Arts & Humanities Council; and in 2011, she was recognized as a Finalist in the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest for her original song "Anvil".
Sarah Fridrich has a B.A. in liberal arts from St. John's College, and a 2nd B.A. in music from the University of Maryland. Kirk Kubicek, also has a BA in music from UMD and loves to teach. He is an in-demand drummer, who plays alongside his father - double drums - in the popular DMV band "On The Bus", as well as with Philly folk-rock outfit "My Son Bison", and multiple projects that range from folk to jazz improvisation groups in the Philadelphia and MD/DC areas.
Their apocolyptic love-song "Nights at The End of The World" was released as their first single together on March 2015. Their song "Brighter" won "Honorable Mention" from the 2015 MidAtlantic Song Contest.
In 2016, Sarah & Kirk played shows from Seattle to DC, across the Western mountains and MidWestern farmland, on their fan-funded "Lighter Bones" Tour. September 2nd, 2016, they released a new EP: "Lighter Bones".
PRESS REVIEWS:
"She comes across as a failed pop star, but not in a bad way ..."
Iman Lababedi - RockNYC
"Anxious pianos and confident vocals burst into satisfying hooks. The songs, while ostensibly pop, take more guidance from the Tom Waits school of slanted enchantment than the Brill Building...."
Blake Courlang - Sweet Tea Pumpkin Pie Album Reviews
"...earbuds just don’t do these expansive arrangements justice."
Juli Thanki - District Noise
"I’ve now listened to this album about a million times. “You Call That Brave” is easily way far out in the lead for my favorite album of 2011 and I don’t know how anything is going to beat it. There’s no way this isn’t in my Top 3 of the year. No possible way. Ms. Fridrich is the real deal."
Ben LeRoy - Amphetazine
“Sarah Fridrich is an Annapolis native who has been lighting up stages up and down the East Coast. Her jazz-inflected singer-songwriter style, infused with indi-pop, draws rave reviews”
Jessica Pachler - The Capital Newspaper
“A D.C. singer-songwriter who gives superlatives a workout: sultry, unhurried, stirring and alluring ... lyrically descriptive, sincere, emollient and vocally enchanting”
AIMSEL L. PONTI - Portland Press Herald
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