Jess Kerber is a songwriter from just outside New Orleans, LA. Picking up the guitar at age 12, she quickly learned the instrument on an atypical path. Heavily inspired by artists like Joni Mitchell and Susan Tedeschi, she primarily gravitated towards alternate tunings, giving her playing a unique color unlike most other musicians.
Her musicianship developed quickly as playing and writing music became an obsession within the isolation of small-town Louisiana. By her teenage years, she began performing solo shows around New Orleans. Her voice grew to attain a deep purple heaviness, enchanting her early recordings, all backed by the tasteful intricacy of her guitar playing, melodic and captivating enough to stand on its own.
Before long, Jess found herself at Boston’s Berklee College of Music as the 2018 Berklee Lollapalooza full scholarship recipient. The environment challenged her tastes and songwriting style, leading her to adopt a more subdued and lyric-driven approach, influenced by indie-folk artists like Andy Shauf and Adrianne Lenker. She became entrenched in Boston’s burgeoning folk scene, centered around Cambridge’s historic Club Passim. Just before the pandemic, she met fellow New England-based songwriter Will Orchard, who became her partner and collaborator. They spent much of the early pandemic producing what would become her self-titled full-length record, marking a sharp turning point in her sound.
Arranged with a blend of instruments ranging from drum machines to pedal steel, the record is rooted in Americana but pushes the genre forward. Her songwriting intimately captures self-reflection, complemented by arrangements both gently uplifting and serenely heartbreaking. Mixed by Charlie Dahlke of The Brazen Youth, Jess debuted many of these songs in acoustic duo form on a month-long, self-booked European tour with Will Orchard in late 2021. Having released her self-titled album in May of 2022, she now resides in Nashville, TN with her cat.
