Star Anna
"Star Anna is a musical 'soul-mate' for those late and lonely nights, a voice so intoxicating that it might just eliminate any real desire to find a 'true love'." - Mark Pickerel, Screaming Trees
Star Anna's debut album, Crooked Path, offers a glimpse into the journey that's gotten her where she is today. While it may have felt to her like it took a long, long time to get it right, at only 22 years old, it seems not to have taken so long after all.
Star was born and raised in Ellensburg, Washington, a high plains town in eastern Washington. It was here that she first experienced rock and roll. She can remember her father slipping headphones over her ears to give her the experience of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. It was all there—the clock, the heartbeat, the screaming, the jiggling of change. At only four years old, that was just the beginning.
Star grew up going to local rock and blues shows with her parents. She danced and played until she fell asleep in their VW bus, soon to be tucked into bed back at home. At 11, drum lessons relieved the anxieties of an adolescence clouded by ADHD. This was the first of many times when music saved her from herself. When she wasn't playing drums, she was down at the local record store spending her allowance on CDs—Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana, Bad Religion, The Doors, Radiohead, Foo Fighters. This passion for music led Star and three high school friends to form a band, No Continuous Standing. They played a mix of punk, rock, and grunge at local venues and battles of the bands, proudly taking third place on most occasions.
When her first band broke up, Star began playing acoustic guitar and writing her own songs. She blended her early punk and rock influences with a folk and alt country sound, and soon the unique style she plays today was born. She took her creations to coffee houses, campfires, and sidewalks, but before she had a chance to realize her calling, her life took a wrong turn. She spent two hard years away from herself, drinking heavily and living recklessly. Music had always been a balm for Star's soul, but during this dark time, it became a necessity for her survival. Only with her guitar close to her chest could she find the way back from the black hole of self-pity and anger.
Part of the process of getting back to herself was the gradual formation of the musical entity she leads today, Star Anna and The Laughing Dogs. The first step in this direction took place when bassist Frank Johnson, an old family friend, began playing with Star. After seeing Star and Frank perform at a local show, drummer Travis Yost asked if he could join. Soon afterward, guitarist Cory Dorsch asked to come aboard too. And thus, from musicians drawn into Star's orbit by the energy and feel of her music, Star Anna and The Laughing Dogs was born.
The band started playing more local shows around Ellensburg, and soon they were branching out to play in Yakima, Roslyn, and Seattle. They began recording their first CD in the winter of 2006, but by the time the rough recording was finished, Corey reluctantly decided to leave to pursue an academic career in New York state. This opened the door for guitarist Justin Davis. Like Travis and Corey before him, Justin saw one performance and knew he had to be part of the band. Before they had even started looking, the band had an eager and talented replacement. From the first time Justin sat in with the band, they all knew it was the right fit. Star Anna and The Laughing Dogs were ready to move forward again and finish making their first album, Crooked Path.
The completion of this album was just another step along the musical and emotional journey that has defined Star's young life. Her music, at once fragile and wise, draws you into her world, just as it drew in the members of her band. Whether the song is an autobiographical tale or the product of Star's unique insight into the human condition, you can't miss the fact that it comes from Star and nowhere else. Every one of her songs feels like a battle between strength and weakness, courage and fear. Listening to her songs, you get the idea that she has fifty years of emotion and experience, but her tender, even fragile, style reminds you that she's still a fledgling.
Star is continuing her musical journey, as anyone who hears or sees her knows she must. The band is playing gigs throughout the Pacific Northwest and recording a second album that's sure to be as haunting, as perceptive, and as moving as the first. Star knows that it takes a long, long time to get it right, but everyone else knows that she's already well on the way.
Written by Shanon Emerson and Jack Miller