Amy Kucharik - Until The Words Are Gone (2018)

Amy Kucharik is a ukulele-slinging singer-songwriter based in Somerville, MA. The 2015 Kerrville Grassy Hill New Folk winner explores the full range of her instrument's capabilities as a tool to convey a complex array of subjects and moods: Whether humorous, topical or intense, she steers listeners away from the ukulele's perception as a twee novelty. At the same time, Amy wants her audience to have a good time, and her performances are infused with Vaudevillian charm and an infectious, danceable swing. Her music draws from a range of influences including blues, ragtime jazz, folk, pop and country... as well as aesthetics garnered from film and literature. Amy's catchy, sexy, sometimes haunting songs recount tales of reluctant love, heartbreak, revenge, and grit.

Originally from Southern IL, Amy grew up playing classical piano and studied french horn from the 6th grade through college. At Southern Illinois University, Amy studied art and creative writing, ultimately earning her MFA in poetry, meanwhile playing horn in the University Wind Ensemble. However, it was after moving to Boston and through a swing dancing friend that Amy first became interested in the ukulele, the instrument that ignited her songwriting. In 2012, she put together her band, Friends With Benefits.

Amy's band features a revolving assortment of talented musicians who perform regularly in New England. Their 2013 EP, "Dance Crush Blues," was created as a tribute to their mutual love of the swing and blues dance community. The band was selected to perform at Montreal Bagel & Blues 2014 dance exchange and Boston's Sweet Molasses Blues exchange in 2013 and 2015.

Amy's full-length debut album, "Cunning Folk," was released in 2014. It contains 10 of Amy's originals arranged for a diversely instrumented band featuring luscious vocal harmonies and swirling New Orleans brass. "Cunning Folk" was nominated for Red Line Roots Album of the Year in 2014.

In 2015, Amy was a winner of the Grassy Hill Kerrville Newfolk competition, an honor given to six songwriters selected from a pool of 800 applicants. She toured central Texas with the other five winners, and has been collaborating with several of the Newfolk finalists on future musical endeavors. Amy has also shared bills with Denver, CO-based YouTube ukulele sensation Danielle Ate the Sandwich, as well as Samantha Farrell and Boston Music Award Folk Artist of the Year 2014 Dan Blakeslee. Her song, "Creepy Dead Bug," co-written with Klyma, was covered by Trout Fishing in America (who NPR call "the Lennon and McCartney of kid's music") on their 2013 release, "Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers." Amy also performs as a vocalist with the Dan Fox Foxtet swing band, and her own vintage blues band, Tiger Moan.