All songs written or co-written by Kristin Hersh except "When The Levee Breaks" (Jimmy Page/Robert Plant/John Paul Jones/John Bonham).
In 1986 when Throwing Muses' first album arrived on the college scene, Kristin Hersh's overwhelming songwriting tended to alarm. Combining deeply introspective lyrics with highly accomplished musicianship, Hersh embodied the mid-1980s fascination with the new female folkies. As time went on, and the musical climate changed, more and more realized that it wasn't folk that brought about Hersh's fascination with acoustic arrangements, but the intimacy it evokes.
Almost ten years later, Throwing Muses are a part of alterna-rock history, but Hersh remains an accomplished songwriter and arranger. With the release of the STRINGS EP, Hersh re-establishes what made the Muses so inspiring. Combining her cunning ear for rhythm changes and acoustic dynamics, STRINGS offers four remakes from HIPS AND MAKERS, re-working them into acoustic pieces flavored with string arrangements.
STRINGS establishes what makes Hersh's songwriting so imperative. While many female songwriters of this era wrap themselves in calculated aggression, showing their frustration through shrieks, Hersh subscribes to the idea that you have to listen harder to a whisper than to a scream. The terrifyingly honest "A Loon" betrays the heart of someone tired of fearing for her sanity, and after years of seeing herself through someone else's eyes, is taking her life into her own hands. Hersh's cover of Led Zeppelin's "When The Levee Breaks" plays out being pushed to your limit while still being able to stand. In a sense, no other song could articulate Hersh's accomplishments. She's been through the wringer of marriage, motherhood, and alternative rock, but when the levee does break, she won't be lost in the flood.
