“This magnificent ‘80s throwback from singer/songwriter SHANNON CURTIS’ GOOD TO ME, an album that began as a pandemic-era healing journal and ended up as a synth-pop suite, deserves to be a hit in this year of Kate Bush.”
“These days, it is rare to encounter something truly unique. Because of this, it took my brain a little while to land on the fact that I was, in fact, experiencing something genuinely original at the Shannon Curtis concert I recently attended.
One part musical performance, one part TED talk, and one part visual art installation, this concert is truly a unique experience. Shannon and her husband Jamie Hill successfully synthesize the elements of song, storytelling, and visuals in a way that is alternately entertaining, captivating, and expansive.
Shannon’s willingness to be vulnerable, combined with her and Jamie’s musicality, work together as an invitation to hear and see her personal story while, as all the best art does, also making us, the viewers, feel heard. The quality of the musicianship, the mesmerizing visuals, and the vibe of sheer authenticity make a way for the deeper thoughts and questions of the evening to wash right on into you. Which is to say, this is not an actual TED talk; no need to pack a note-taking device … just go. And be. Like me, you’ll be all in.”
“I really really like this new Shannon Curtis album, start to finish. The sonic palette, shot through with ’80s atmosphere (the good kind!), is immediately engaging, and Curtis’s prowess as a singer is continually on display.
‘Good To Me’ is the title track … the song feels both large and meditative at the same time. And from beginning to end, the songcraft is exquisite.”
How will empathetic people survive the troubles of this time? How do we rescue our overburdened spirits from overlapping disasters such as rising fascism and climate collapse? And from where can we summon the power to heal ourselves, our communities, and the planet?
These are the animating questions behind singer, songwriter, and storyteller Shannon Curtis’s new album and show Good to Me — her second collection of shimmering 80s-inspired synthpop in as many years.
Confronted in late 2021 with near-paralyzing anxiety brought about by the increasingly fraught state of the world, Curtis aimed her angst at her journal. Using tools she acquired in 12-step recovery, she set out on a quest for self-healing, with the intention of nurturing her personal sense of peace and agency in a world on fire.
The journal entries became 80s-inspired synthpop songs, influenced in equal measure by the textural angularity of Kate Bush, the Blade Runner-esque futurism of Vangelis, the celebratory propulsion of Erasure, and the hopeful joy of OMD.
The result is a song journey that took Curtis through a practice of identifying failed coping mechanisms (“From the Inside Out”), coming to terms with radical acceptance (“Be With What Is”), learning to trust her inner truth (“The Silent Sea”), and reconnecting to her serenity and power (“I Am”) — even as the world continued to burn.
With their move into theater spaces, Curtis and her husband, record producer Jamie Hill, have designed an immersive narrative journey of personal empowerment, complete with high-energy musical performance, scripted storytelling, and enveloping video art. It’s not just a show, it’s an experience, intended to leave you a little different than it found you.
The extended Good to Me project aims to illuminate a path for others to go deeper on this journey in a personal way — complete with a companion book for more intimate and extended introspection.
The title song from Good to Me spent three months in the Listener Top 5 on commercial AAA radio in the Pacific Northwest at the end of 2022.
The Good to Me tour will bring Curtis to North America and Europe in 2024.
