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Yamagata was raised in both New York City, U.S. by her German-Italian mother and in Washington D.C, U.S. by her third-generation Japanese father, listening to the likes of Carole King, Roberta Flack and James Taylor. After studying French at Northwestern University, Illinois, U.S. in the mid 1990s Yamagata changed course and began studying Italian theatre at New York’s Vassar College. Later returning to Northwestern University she joined the theatre program and joined the band Bumpus.
After a tenure of six years with Bumpus, Yamagata had developed a small catalogue of songs not synonymous with the band’s sound and decided to launch a solo career. The songwriter landed a record deal with Arista’s Private Music in September 2002 and a self-titled EP was released a month later.
Yamagata’s debut album “Happenstance” hit the shelves in June 2004 and was produced by John Alagia at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas. Following the release, Yamagata toured with Mandy Moore and even contributed to Moore’s 2007 album “Wild Hope”.
In 2008 Yamagata released follow-up three-track EP “Loose Ends” and her sophomore album “Elephants… Teeth Sinking Into Heart” which represented a darker tone for the singer. Yamagata’s third studio album entitled “Chesapeake” was released through Frankenfish Records in 2011 and EP named “Heavyweight” in 2012.
Despite her album success and due to the pop-driven accessibility of Yamagat’s music, she has contributed extensively to fellow musician’s work as well as to TV and film. She has provided vocals on tracks by Jason Mraz’s, Rhett Miller, Toots & the Maytals, Ray Lamontagne and Bright Eyes, and had songs appeared on 30 Rock, The L Word, How I Met Your Mother and Grey’s Anatomy
The room was still, and a sample of an old, Great Depression era recording played over some soft string sections.
Rachael Yamagata walked out onto the stage as the sample faded, and began playing her grand piano with no hesitation, wasting no time. The slow, somber melody blink into existence, as Rachael's hushed, but powerful voice shot in over the softly played notes.
The combination was haunting. A minimalist, but full sound, with a lush, cold atmosphere helped the lyrics carry an extremely beautiful and tragic tone. I was easily swaying away, and losing myself into the dreamy mix, as the back up male vocalist, and simple, subtle strings accentuated the piano. The hazy, lost sound of the song, "Elephants" drifted in from the ethereal other world, but still feels incredibly familiar, dreamy and heart wrenching.
When the slide guitar came in over the mix, the audience was still, and half way teary eyed. The song was very beautiful and deserved a little more than merely mindlessly bobbing our heads. It seemed like she was really speaking to us, and it felt so incredible to be witnessing this show.
I don't know if this show was particularly good, but Rachael Yamagata was a phenomenal personality, with stunning song writing abilities, when I saw her..
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