Stacy Kray is a many-faceted gem, an artistic treasure just hanging out in our own backyard in SF. As I sit down to write about her recent release My Last Eye, I am very humbled. How can I write a review for someone who has such a gift with words? Her lyrics speak for themselves in this regard, but as another example of Stacy's deeply poetic soul here is a note she sent me on the song "So Low (Elliot's Song)."

"I wrote this song just after Elliot Smith died, taking with him sonic masterpieces as yet unwritten. I still mourn the fact that someone with such miraculous gifts for poetry and music could drown in them."

Stacy Kray's My Last Eye strikes me as a Tori Amos meets Joan Osborne type of package. The vocal performances on this album are exceptional with just the right mix of sultry emotion and gritty "tell it like it is" rock. The tracks are guitar-driven with an outstanding cast of characters filling out the band, including Jon Evans (Tori Amos) on bass, Todd Roper (Cake, Etienne de Rocher) on drums and Yair Evnine (Spencer Day, Rain of Frogs) on lead guitar and cello. Stacy also used cream-of-the-crop personnel on the technical side with recording and mix engineer Mikael Johnston (Smashmouth, the Sounds, Jane's Addiction) and mastering engineer Emily Lazar of The Lodge in New York. I congratulate Stacy on the self-produced aspect of this album - no easy task for even the most seasoned of studio artists but Stacy holds her own on her first set of studio recordings, spanning a breadth of creativity on par with the pros. With organic instrumentation and thoughtful arrangements she takes a firm artistic stand, comfortable in her identity.

I was hooked on "Someday" from the first listen. It's not surprising this inventive little track caught the attention of KFOG, receiving repeat airplay and a spot on their Local Scene 4 compilation disc. My favorite lyrical tidbits from this poetic masterpiece:

“You said there are some things better left unsaid, I said the unknown is all I really want to know...
They say there are some loves better left unloved, the way you hold my hand can be so underhanded”

"Someday" is rich with layers of meaning from start to finish while still leaving room for listeners to create their own meaning. After all, who can't script their own personal screenplay to a chorus that tugs at the soul with "thinking someday, we'll have it all"? Take a listen and see what your movie looks like. Pulsing rhythm guitars alternate back and forth to emulate a figurative tug-of-war on the verses, mirroring the disparities we so often find when our dreams come face to face with reality. The choruses open up with a hint of airy spaciousness in the arrangement to accompany the dreamer inherent in "Someday."

Stacy noted that her tune "Freeze" is about "the most complicated relationship in my life -- my entanglement with time." I have to admit that I share a similar fate when it comes to our dear friend Father Time so I may be a bit biased when I chalk this tune up as another one of my favorites. All biases on subject matter aside, the arrangement is lovely and fresh with descending guitar lines creating the perfect backdrop for lyrics like "but you just tease." The drummer switches to playing a "clicking" pattern off the rim of the drum for the choruses and a nice glock-ish layer accentuates the "tick tock" bridge.

The cinematic quality of "Drugs from a Drive-Thru Lane" begs for a moving picture to accompany. In fact, I daresay someone needs to make a movie about Stacy's inspiration for this tune. Here is a glimpse of the terrible circumstances she shared with me.

"On a sunny afternoon in Phoenix a few years ago, my cousin was killed by a cop who believed she was trying to fill a fraudulent prescription at a drive-thru pharmacy. She apparently tried to drive away while he took down her license plate number. Witnesses said the cop drew his gun, ran after the car and shot her point-blank through the open window. The cop knew that her 14-month-old son was in the back seat. The case caused a furor in Phoenix. The cop was tried for second-degree murder and child endangerment. The jury found him not guilty. I wrote this song the day the verdict was handed down."
Stacy moves effortlessly between deep explorations of the darker side of life and examining somewhat lighter paradoxical situations. She brings Carl Jung into the rock arena and adeptly wields her poetic sword to slice life open for a good honest look at what's inside. Once again, Stacy says it best when she describes My Last Eye as "broken lines through the maze of the human condition. I'm exploring the dead ends and superhighways, often unsure which is which. So my songs are more puzzles than pronouncements."

With this impressive debut studio effort under her belt, I hope this prolific young artist who is so willing to explore the inner contours of our society will settle even further into her creative skin and push the boundaries of where music and psychological mysteries meet. Don't miss the opportunity to get to know this SF treasure on your own. Kray will be performing an acoustic set with Yair Evnine as the featured performer at Red House Studio's Songwriter Cafe on Sunday, February 24th. The songwriter's cafe begins at 7:30 pm, featuring songwriter-in-the-round performances by multiple Bay Area songwriters. It concludes with a set of Kray's music at 9pm. Red House Studios is located at 1667 Botelho Drive in Walnut Creek, (925) 938-6900.
Kray will also be playing at SXSW in Austin, TX on March 14th at 3pm and at the Fillmore in SF on March 27 supporting Jose Gonzalez.

-Rachel Allgood is a San Francisco-based producer-engineer. She's worked with artists such as New Order, Vanessa Carlton and many members of the local scene.