“…I got to see her set and I thought it was really amazing. It’s really nice to see another girl singing really big and singing loud who’s influenced by country and rock-n- roll…we may kidnap her and take her on the rest of the tour with us.” -BRANDI CARLILE

“…the whole package…” -XM SATELLITE RADIO

“Soulful standout Jen Murdza has beaten the pack by continually defying genres” -BOSTON.COM

“Distinctly different” -NORTHEAST PERFORMER

HIGHLIGHTS: 2008 XM Satellite Radio, Radar Report – Artist of the Week

• Lowell Summer Music Series performance supporting Brandi Carlile

• Boston Music Award Nominee – Best New Act

• Mountain Stage NewSong New England regional finalist

• NEMO/Starbucks Music Makers Competition semi-finalist

• OurStage Blues Winner in September for “Cold”

• New York’s Songwriter Circle at The Bitter End (alumni includes Vanessa Carlton and Nora Jones) -———————————————————

Jen Murdza (murd-za)

Skillfully maneuvering lush vocals around her unique guitar rhythms, Boston’s own Jen Murdza is an eye-catching, ear-catching performer who will take you instantly by surprise.

With a fresh songwriting style built on an almost sarcastic marriage of somber lyrics and playful, rhythmic grooves, Murdza blurs genres like no other. Her final sound is an addictive, foot-stomping mixture of soul, rock and jazz with a voice bigger than her body. The Boston Herald agrees and writes, Jen has a “strikingly supple voice”.

Paul Jordan, BlogCritics.org writes, “Not since I first heard Diana Krall, nearly five years ago, have I been so excited about the advent of a fresh new female vocalist to the music scene, Jen Murdza is going to break a lot of molds and cross lines between genres, mark my words, she is the real deal.”

With the well-received debut EP “Things Untold” behind her and the recent release of her full-length follow-up “Reboundin’”, Murdza is quickly gaining notice. This sophomore effort finds her helming the project as producer, arranger, rhythmn guitarist, keyboardist… and she even plucks the bass on one of the tracks. Supported by notable musicians from Boston jazz, soul, and rock music scenes, the album is alive with the rhythms and textures from the days when music was less mass-produced.

Murdza’s “Reboundin’” is a collection of original music ripe with genre-blending tunes that are truly a “tip of the hat” to so many styles of music close to her heart. Songs like the title track and “Soft Shoes” have hints of the influential music from the peak of the Sun Records’ era from artists such as Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, and Johnny Cash. The more pop-oriented tracks like “Gracious”, “Cold” and “You’ll Never Know” share strong roots in the R&B music Jen’s Mom imparted on her from legends Stevie Wonder and Gladys Knight. “Did I Ever Tell You”, a song about never feeling you’ve said quite enough how much you love someone, blends the haunting melancholy of an old Hank Williams’ tune with swirling Wurlizter-like tones of a carousel and textural guitar effects often found in modern day electronica. While Murdza definitely pulls from multiple genres, there is an inarguable cohesiveness to the album driven by her strong vocal style, unusual tempo changes, and acoustic guitar rhythms. Though influences abound, the sound is distinctively her own.

Jen has been featured in numerous publications including The Boston Globe, The Boston Herald, Northeast Performer, Bay Windows, Northeast In-Tune Magazine, Metronome Magazine, and Skope Magazine among a number of online publications. She’s performed live before the massive viewing audiences of Boston TV stations, including WBZ-TV, Fox 25, and NECN. Major Boston radio stations Mix 98.5, 92.5 The River, and 100.7 WZLX played Jen’s songs “Gracious” and “Cold” in their You Outta Know, Homegrown and Sunday AM Blues shows. XM Satellite Radio featured Jen as their Radar Report Artist of the Week, in January ’08.

She has opened for standout artists such as Brandi Carlile, James Hunter, Dave Mason, Joe Bonamassa,The Subdudes, Johnny A, Bill Janovitz, and Ryan Montbleau to a consistently positive response.