Biography

History

Born in 1996 amidst the fertile folk music scene of Buffalo NY, Redheaded Stepchild is the creative vehicle for the combined talents of singer/songwriter Kathryn Koch and guitarist/songwriter David Nanni. Throughout the late 90’s the band worked relentlessly across their region, building a strong reputation as a live act and selling thousands of live recordings. By 2000 Kathryn and David decided to take their show on the road. With the release of their first studio recording, “Time Will Tell”, the group began a schedule of non-stop touring that would last for five years. By 2005 Redheaded Stepchild had played well over twelve hundred shows across 22 states, sold over six thousand recordings and built a solid fan base of true believers. Today Redheaded Stepchild is making its presence felt in the songwriting community in their new home of Nashville TN. Settling in just long enough to feel at home, the band will take their show on the road again in early ’08 hitting festivals and touring through the end of the summer.

Sound

Built around Kathryn’s fiery vocals and the lyrical and melodic sensibilities that both artists share, the songs are steeped in tradition yet intensely original. With a wide palette of acoustic sounds including Koch’s stellar harmonica and saxophone playing, Nanni’s driving guitar style and the often-featured guests on banjo, fiddle or piano, the bands CD’s are a treasure trove of the familiar and the new. But it is the live show that they live for and the live show where they shine! With amazing presence and diversity, Koch never fails to deliver soulful, heartfelt and inspiring performances. Often belting out her lines from five feet behind her microphone, Kathryn can leave audience members feeling more like witnesses!

Quotes

“Koch has a beautiful voice and heaps of soul” Nashville Music Guide, Nashville TN

“…one of the most engaging vocalists in the Americana tradition” Focus, Hickory NC

“…a soulful voice born to sing the blues” Dayton Daily News, Dayton OH

“ Soaring vocals… a constant down-home flavor” Mountain Times, Boone NC

“… rootsy originals soaked in pure Americana” Erie Daily Times, Erie PA

“A heaping of Americana… plus an essential trace element of pure salvation” The Buffalo News, Buffalo NY

Highlights

Over 7000 recordings sold at over 1300 shows in more than 250 venues across 26 states.

Festivals and Events: Suwannee Springfest (4x), Magnolia Festival (3x), Great Blue Heron Festival (3x), Barnyard Folk Festival (10x), O.U.R. Fest (8x), Allentown Art Fest (9x), AppleUmpkin Fest (4x), Blues in the Valley (3x), E. Providence Heritage Fest, Dayton Blues Fest, The Dam Show (4x), Nelson Ledges, South Mountain Acoustic Revival, Cape Fear Fair, Taste of Buffalo, Snowshoe Mtn Chili Fest, Elmwood Ave Fest of the Arts (3x), Ellington Unplugged, Fetish Fest(3x), Black Swamp Arts Fest, FlyDay (4x), Rockin’ the Knox, Americanarama (4x), Waterfront Fest, Mother Earth Fest (2x), Northfork Music Fest (4x), Utica Monday Nite (3x) and many more.

Opened for such diverse acts as; Rusted Root, Medeski, Martin and Wood, Link Wray, W.C. Clarke, Richard Buckner, They Might Be Giants, The Mollys, Spencer Bohren, David Nelson, Bill Kirchen, Commander Cody etc.