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Carnival of Hopes reviewed by Three Chords and the Truth, UK
A year and half after being introduced to UK audiences via her BREAK AND BLOOM album, Jane Kramer quickly returns with a follow up record. CARNIVAL OF HOPES gets it release over here on 8 January and has evolved into a quite impressive body of work. We were introduced to Jane as an artist working in the creative Pacific Coast melting pot of Portland Oregon and now we see her heading back to her Appalachian roots with stunning results. The record is knee deep in raw roots elegance with banjo and fiddle featuring prominently alongside an abundance of honest, thoughtful and reflective writing. The calling to return to Asheville is the theme for the record and the clear winner from this renewed inspiration is the listener who maybe is taking a chance on an unknown artist for the first time.

There are a number of clearly defined routes for this type of music into the UK and there is no doubt that Jane Kramer has the potential to make more than a fleeting impression with the strength of this album. If anything it has more defined qualities than its acclaimed predecessor with an earthy, worn and gritty take on real life. Devoid of any superficial elements, this is a straightforward hard-core dose of reality showcasing a lauded brand of American roots music.

On a record neatly packaged in a ten track format, Jane features nine of her self-penned compositions leaving room for a solitary cover to anchor the record in track #5 position. The choice to include the Tom Petty homage to the southern states ‘Down South’ is an apt move considering Jane’s own decision to return to her home state of North Carolina. The fit is seamless as either side of this pivotal number are songs brimming with emotions and forever exploring a variety of musical directions. In the second part of the record ‘Why I’d Do That Blues’ features a little brass and encompasses a sound as implied in the title. In an alternative roots direction, ‘My Dusty Wings’ brings the curtain down with an old time bluegrass feel and a sentiment that sometimes you need to dance away your problems.

Two similar tracks in length and impact cement the album’s appeal in its latter stages with ‘Truth Tellin’ Eyes' matching the previous song ‘Highways, Rivers & Scars’ in the depth of its issues and feelings. Earlier in the record ‘Truck Stop Stars’ unveils deep inner thoughts from forever seeking your true destination. This is one of many songs on the record sung beautifully and impassionedly by Jane while retaining an aura of discovery upon each listen.

On a record which maintains a high standard from start to finish, the first four tracks set the bar at the level required for a release of profound impact. ‘Half Way Gone’ wonderfully swings the album into motion with fiddle strongly driving this opening track which delightfully states that there ‘is not enough brown liquor in the whole state of Tennessee. ‘Carnival of Hopes’ has the potential to move the listener within a tune commendable in the way it weaves into your aural senses. ‘Your Ever Green Heart’ is another solid effort, but perhaps slightly overshadowed by the superior and hard hitting ‘Good Woman’ which makes the most enticing claim for being the stand out track, although this will rotate on each listen.

Fans of American roots music will absolutely connect with the music of Jane Kramer and CARNIVAL OF HOPES possesses a limitless appeal to sustain a lengthy presence in the accessible portion of many a record collection. Super sounds, meaningful themes and authentic vibes are all present to make this a record of great merit.

Carnival of Hopes reviewed by Malcolm Carter for Pennyblack Music, UK
The opening track on Asheville, North Carolina-based Jane Kramer’s second solo album leaves little doubt as to where this talented singer-songwriter is coming from. ‘Half Way Gone’, a fiddle-driven country swing, sets the scene for the album, which is steeped in that Appalachian bluegrass sound which colours the other nine songs on ‘Carnival of Hopes’.

Produced and engineered by Adam Johnson at Sound Temple Studios in Asheville, Kramer wrote nine of the songs, the exception being a fine cover of Tom Petty’s ‘Down South’. By the second cut on the album, the title song, you’ll wonder why such a talented songwriter felt the need to cover Petty’s song. Kramer is a brilliant lyricist; while much is made, understandably, of her vocal abilities Kramer is one of those songwriters who draws the listener into her stories with her lyrics. When paired with the unforgettable melodies that Kramer seems to effortlessly pluck out of the air to complete the picture, it makes for compelling listening. Even if you’ve never lived the life that Kramer explores in her songs, you’ll feel some affinity; the melodies alone are irresistible and there’s always that voice. While artists from Alison Krauss to Nanci Griffith have been mentioned in the past when Kramer’s vocals and songwriting have been considered, Kramer has a distinctive voice of her own. Hints of most of the major players in her field can filter through on occasions but for the most part those vocals are pure Kramer.

Of course, Jane Kramer isn’t the only female singer-songwriter who can sing but there are few that also have her songwriting skills. Returning to the title song (which you will do many times), especially following on after a song cut from a different cloth, shows what a unique talent Kramer is. The tune immediately worms its way into the listener's head, Kramer’s vocals are even more emotive than usual on her ballads, and each play reveals that lyrically Kramer is at the top of her game here. While songs like ‘Your Ever-Green Heart’ continue in the American roots music vein, there’s ‘Good Woman’ which with its fiddle, cello and banjo doesn’t stray too far from the expected sound, but the production, arrangement and Kramer’s heartfelt vocal performance lift the song out of the confines of any genre. It’s simply an outstanding performance, a song that should be heard by an audience far greater than it’s destined for.

‘Truck Stop Stars’ has another irresistible tune. A reflective ballad with a chorus that belies the yearning in Kramer’s moving vocals, on any other album this song would have been the highlight. The fact is that it’s just one of many little gems scattered throughout ‘Carnival Of Hopes’.

Kramer throws a few surprises in; ‘Why’d I Do That Blues’ mixes in a little jazz and blues resulting is a sultry New Orleans stew complete with appropriate brass, while ‘Highways, Rivers and Scars’ is so moving that, given Kramer really pours every last bit of emotion into her vocals on this track, it will touch the hardest of hearts.

There are times when Dolly Parton’s early work makes a fleeting appearance; songs like ‘Truth Tellin’ Eyes’ conjure up memories of some of Parton’s lesser known songs, and there are even touches of Parton in the vocals occasionally.

The album closes with ‘My Dusty Wings’ much in the same way as it started. This banjo-fuelled bluegrass cut brings things full circle but what a wonderful musical journey Kramer and her bunch of talented co-creators take you on with ‘Carnival of Hopes’.




Muriel Anderson, Acclaimed American Guitarist and Composer
"Jane Kramer's first solo album, "Break & Bloom", is intriguing, poetic and powerful. She is a gifted songwriter with a voice to match."

Jane Kramer Announced a Semi-Finalist In 'Unsigned Only' International Music Competition
July 3rd
It was announced today that Jane Kramer's songs "Nobody's Woman Tonight" and "Red Balloon" were semi-finalists in the categories of Folk / Singer-Songwriter and Adult Contemporary, respectively, in the international music contest "Unsigned Only" which received over 9,000 submissions from artists worldwide. Songs were judged by a panel of renown musicians and music industry executives, including Brandi Carlile, Iggy Pop, Chrissie Hynde and Cyndi Lauper, to name a few, and were evaluated on songwriting, arrangement, vocal performance and overall likeability.

Break & Bloom, A Review by Author Jeffrey Hutchins
A Masterpiece from a Gifted Singer/Songwriter

"Break and Bloom" is amazing. Powerful. Beautiful. The best album I've heard in years.

The strangest tragedy in American history occurred on January 15, 1919, when 21 people in Boston were killed after a storage tank full of molasses exploded. If you ever wondered what it might be like to drown in molasses, listen to Jane Kramer’s extraordinary voice and stick-to-you sweet songs on “Break and Bloom,” her first solo release.

Give me a great storytelling lyric set to a catchy melody, some minor chords, and a voice that floats on water, and I'm hooked.

“I’ve spent some dark, dark nights in this soul of mine,” Jane sings in a voice that is equal parts molasses and bittersweet chocolate. And she means to shine a light in every corner of that dark night’s gloom, partly to reveal what’s been hidden and partly to chase away the monsters under that bed.

Will a fickle listening audience discover her? They should; these songs are gut-wrenchingly good. Not only do the beautiful tunes and Jane’s brilliant voice bring out the pure raw emotions of the lyrics, but the entire production grabs me by the heart and shakes me. Any person in the world who has an ounce of compassion will instantly fall in love with Jane.

Take the song "Georgia." I don't have to know anything about Jane’s personal history to get a feel for it here. "I can't be nobody's missus / I make a lonely nobody's wife / and I can't be in Carolina / she split my heart right open wide... I lost at cards in North Dakota in a dim-lit Fargo bar / I lost my band back there in Asheville / kindness only gets an honest girl so far." Songwriting does not get better than that; in a handful of lines, she has told us so much of the story. "There's a light that I can see, though it might not be shining for me." As a heterosexual man with a heart, words like these kick my protective instincts into high gear. Lots of listeners – male and female – will want to sit down with Jane and be that light she’s following “a piece on down the road.”

"Nobody's Woman Tonight" is another zinger to the heart. Songs in 3/4 time always manage to move me the most. Jane’s voice has some of the same sweet, catchy quality of Iris DeMent, and no one can wring more out of a waltz than she... but Jane may be her equal. I choked up and could not speak to my wife while we listened to this gorgeous ballad.

"The Devil Don't Want" should make soulful singers like Adele quake in their non-work boots. Jane comes across here as strong, smart, and independent, but there is a part that cannot get past being vulnerable and fragile. She is tempered glass in which there is a weakness that, when tapped just right, will cause the entire pane to shatter. And we know this flaw exists because Jane all but tells us where to find it. (And note the awesome piano work of Tim Ribner that helps propel “Devil” and will make you want to hear it again and again.)

Back in her Asheville days, which she references frequently in these songs, Jane was a big part of two bands: Barrel House Mamas and Firefly Revival. She wrote several fine songs for both bands, but nothing like the instant classics she has rendered here. These new songs have a depth that exceeds her best previous work. The younger Jane would not have had the maturity to bemoan her loss in one line and come back with humor in the next: “I’m going 95 with a fifth of rye, and I ain’t going to jail in this dress.” You’ve got to root for a woman with an attitude like that.

In "Hold My Whiskey," Jane chuckles that she's got her "****-kickin' boots on." That's the strong Jane, the one with a bit of swagger and sass... until she says that "If you plan on loving me, remember that I am a broken thing." Once again she reveals herself as independent, yet vulnerable. She doesn't ask to be loved; she dares us to love her.

“I’ve got this one precious life, and I’m running out of time,” Jane laments in “One Precious Life.” We can only hope that at age 33, Jane Kramer keeps feeling driven to write songs as powerful and beautiful as these. With "Break and Bloom," Jane Kramer has emerged as one of American's best singer/songwriters.