Musical Industry

Much like the powerful god of the sea that their album is named after, the Indigo Girls are shaking up North America as they push through the spring with dates supporting the March release of Poseidon and Bitter Bug. Supporting their 11th studio set through the end of May, the Grammy winning duo will visit Reno, Vancouver, Fargo, Rochester, St. Louis, Dallas and Modesto as they extend the set through spring.

The group doesn’t just represent their two-plus decades together, but also the release marks a first with their own IG Recordings, a departure from any previous restrictions. Enjoy the strength that “Poseidon” has given them this year with <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackPageview', '/outgoing/article_exit_link/2048015']);” href=”http://www.stubhub.com/indigo-girls-tickets/”>Indigo Girls tickets</a> from http://www.stubhub.com.

Jetting out mid-March, Poseidon and the Bitter Bug was the second occasion in which the Indigo Girls worked with producer Mitchell Froom (of 2006′s Despite our Differences), a talented and supportive figure for the two women. “Mitchell was able to build a bridge between Emily [Saliers]‘s songs and my songs more successful than anyone we’ve worked with,” Amy Ray said on the group’s website. “He is a musicians’ musician and has a very clear idea of what will work.”

The album debuted in Billboard 200′s Top 30, with help from session bassist Clare Kenny, drummer Matt Chamberlin and engineer David Boucher. “[Mitchell] likes Amy’s music and he likes my music,” adds Saliers, “which is not the easiest thing to find because we are so different and our songs are different.”

Poseidon and the Bitter Bug wasn’t necessarily a genre jump for the group, which tends to keep things pretty mellow in their alternative folk rock, though it did manage to incite a sense of urgent passion when they amped up recording time in Atlanta to just three weeks. Beyond their classic songwriting skills, Saliers found a new beat in “Digging for Your Dream,” a track that she says is “as close to R&B as I’ve ever gotten.” The result is the first studio set since the last Mitchell piece, though they released 2007′s Live at the Roxy from their Roxy Theater performance in Atlanta that year.

The Atlanta natives have seen success since forming in 1985 – particularly Ray, who went solo just six years ago when she started releasing albums under her non-profit Daemon Records. The two started supporting Poseidon in December last year, though Ray remained a more prominent figure on stage when she took to performing alone in support of her 2008 set Didn’t It Feel Kinder, opening for Brandi Carlile with the Amy Ray Rock Show.

The group’s career hasn’t been deferred since Ray went solo, though the Indigo Girls are on the stage a lot less. For Saliers, Ray’s solo act has kept Indigo Girls strong. “For a band like us, it might feel inauthentic if we tried to branch out in some crazy way musically. That’s why Amy makes solo records, so she can do her own thing outside of what we do together,” Saliers said on their website.

The group’s influences and musical styles have always clashed; when first gaining prominence Saliers cited Joni Mitchell as her influence, whereas Ray drew in the Jam and the Pretenders. Yet this mish-mash of genres has led them not just to critical fame, with one Grammy and six nominations, but also a driving force that has allowed them to stay a prominent act longer than any of their ’80s counterparts.