Jenn Wasner

Last updated
Jenn Wasner
Jenn Wasner portrait.jpg
Background information
Birth nameJennifer Lynn Wasner
Also known asFlock of Dimes
Born (1986-04-16) April 16, 1986 (age 38)
Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Genres
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter, musician
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • bass
  • keyboard
Years active2003–present
Labels

Jennifer Lynn Wasner (born April 16, 1986) [1] is an American musician from Baltimore. Wasner is best known as one of the founding members of the band Wye Oak, along with Andy Stack. [2] Wasner has completed numerous other music projects as well, including a solo project entitled Flock of Dimes, and a collaboration called Dungeonesse with Jon Ehrens of White Life and Art Department.

Contents

Early life

Wasner was born on April 16, 1986, in Baltimore. [3] She began singing at an early age with her mother and started taking classical piano lessons at about the age of five. [4] At the age of twelve her mother taught her how to play guitar, which led to the beginning of her songwriting career. [4] Throughout her childhood, her parents struggled with mental illness, addiction, and financial troubles. [5] By high school, Wasner had met Andy Stack, and begun playing music with him. She continued to write music while away at college. [6]

Music career

Wasner performing in Wye Oak. Wye Oak 2014.jpg
Wasner performing in Wye Oak.

After college Wasner moved to the Hampden neighborhood of Baltimore. [7] She and Stack formed a band with the name "Monarch", which was soon changed to Wye Oak after the state tree of Maryland. [2] After the release of their highly regarded album Civilian in 2011, the group toured in the United States and Europe. Civilian was named the best album of 2011 by The A.V. Club and was featured on television in the popular series The Walking Dead and in the film Safety Not Guaranteed . She also appeared on Titus Andronicus's 2010 album The Monitor, lending her vocals to the track "To Old Friends and New".

After touring with Dirty Projectors, Wasner began work on her solo project Flock of Dimes, which experimented with electronic beats and synthesizers. She worked with Jon Ehrens of the Baltimore-pop group White Life on a new project, Dungeonesse, which released its eponymous album in 2016. [8] Wasner moved from Baltimore to Durham, North Carolina and continues to reside there. [9]

Stack and Wasner reunited to create the fifth major album Shriek , released in April 2014. The band released its sixth studio album, The Louder I Call, the Faster It Runs , in 2018, and a compilation of singles, Every Day Like the Last, in 2023. [10]

Wasner has released two albums, If You See Me, Say Yes in 2016 and Head of Roses in 2022, under her solo project Flock of Dimes. [11] [12] North Carolina–based guitar maker Reverend released a Jenn Wasner signature guitar in 2016 to accompany the first Flock of Dimes album. [13] Wasner has supported Sylvan Esso on tour as Flock of Dimes. [14] In 2016, Wasner was featured in a concert series taking place at the Baltimore–Washington International Airport, where she performed at the baggage claim area of the terminal. [15]

In 2019, Wasner joined Bon Iver as a guitarist. [16] The tour was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic but eventually resumed. She continues to perform with the band. [17]

Wasner produced Madeline Kenney's 2023 sophomore album A New Reality Mind. [18]

Discography

Wasner performing as Flock of Dimes at BWI Airport in February 2016 Flock of Dimes.jpg
Wasner performing as Flock of Dimes at BWI Airport in February 2016

Dungeonesse

Flock of Dimes

Studio albums

Singles

TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
US
AAA
[19]
"Curtain" b/w "Apparition"2012—Non-album singles
"Prison Bride"—
"(This is Why) I Can't Wear White" / "15"—
"Semaphore"2016—If You See Me, Say Yes
"Everything is Happening Today"—
"Don't Dream It's Over" / "Everything is Free"
(featuring Sylvan Esso)		—Non-album single
"Two"202139Head of Roses
"—" denotes single that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Wye Oak

Studio albums

Singles and EPs

  • Destroyer / Wye Oak split 7-inch single with Destroyer (2008, Merge Records)
  • My Neighbor / My Creator 12-inch/CD EP (2010, Merge Records)
  • "Strangers" 7-inch single (2011, Merge Records)
  • "Spiral" digital single (2011, Adult Swim)
  • "Trigger Finger" 7-inch single (2015, Joyful Noise Recordings)
  • No Horizon EP (2020, Merge Records)

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Dungeonesse is an American collaboration between songwriter and producer Jon Ehrens and singer Jenn Wasner out of Baltimore, Maryland. The project was born through their mutual love for Top 40 and R&B and the mechanics behind a hit song. The pair began creating songs long-distance between Los Angeles and wherever Wasner was touring. The group signed to the independent record label Secretly Canadian in 2012, and since have released one single, "Drive You Crazy" b/w "Private Party." Their self-titled debut album was released by Secretly Canadian on May 14, 2013.

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References

  1. ↑ Lee Gardner (April 13, 2011). "Mighty". Archived from the original on 2014-04-30. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
  2. 1 2 Brandon Weigel (April 23, 2014). "Springtime For Wye Oak". Archived from the original on 2014-04-30. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  3. ↑ "Wye Oak Interview (w/ Andy Stack, Jenn Wasner)". Auralstates.com. Archived from the original on 30 April 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Meet Jenn Wasner - Founding Member of Wye Oak". Laist.com. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  5. ↑ Snapes, Laura (2021-04-06). "Flock of Dimes' Jenn Wasner: 'I became incredibly adept at outrunning myself'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  6. ↑ "Jenn Wasner, Wye Oak". March 25, 2011. Archived from the original on 2014-01-02. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
  7. ↑ "ORANJE PREVIEW : Jenn Wasner of Wye Oak". Myoldkentuckyblog.com. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  8. ↑ "Wye Oak's Jenn Wasner Announces Debut Dungeonesse Album, Shares New Track". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  9. ↑ Zoladz, Lindsay (2021-03-30). "How Flock of Dimes Found Herself (With a Little Help From Her Friends)". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  10. ↑ Robles, Jonathan (2023-06-23). "Wye Oak's new project 'Every Day Like the Last' is something special". Variance Magazine. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  11. ↑ "Flock of Dimes: If You See Me, Say Yes". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  12. ↑ "Flock of Dimes: Head of Roses". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  13. ↑ Vaughn, Ashley (2016-07-06). "Reverend Guitars Tell Us About the Making of the Jenn Wasner Signature Guitar". She Shreds Media. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  14. ↑ Sweeney, Alisha. "Jenn Wasner's New EP Finds Peace Amidst Personal Hardships". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  15. ↑ "Jenn Wasner, other Baltimore musicians to perform at BWI Airport". Baltimore Sun . Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  16. ↑ "Wye Oak's Jenn Wasner: "If something kind of scares us and feels a little bit out of our comfort zone, we want to do it more."". Stereogum. 2020-07-15. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  17. ↑ "Being in Bon Iver feels 'like winning the lottery'". Double J. 2023-03-08. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  18. ↑ "Jenn Wasner and Madeline Kenney on the Challenges of Staying Inspired". Talkhouse. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  19. ↑ "Flock of Dimes Triple A Airplay Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
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