Whether performing solo or with Americana harmony trio Red Molly, her acclaimed tales of love and loss, both gritty and sweet, are propelled by her impeccable lap style slide guitar playing. Solo performances feature the dobro as a solo instrument, bouncing between a solid rhythmic backbone and ripping lead lines, all in support of her voice and songs. Her latest recording DobroSinger hit #11 on the Billboard Blues Chart. It’s intimate, real and raw - her dobro and voice recorded at the same time at home, without a band or any studio tricks to hide behind. You can hear every breath, every chuckle, as if you are in the room with her.
You might recognize Abbie from the female trio Red Molly. That’s where she’s honed her skills since 2004 – writing songs, singing and playing the lap-style resonator guitar often referred to as a Dobra. It’s typically an instrument that you’d find in the midst of a 5-piece bluegrass band, but here Abbie pushes the boundaries and uses it on her own without accompaniment. Here’s the record that she always dreamed of making. Using a tiny closet recording studio in her home in the shadow of NYC, Abbie gathered a collection of songs and recorded them raw – singing and playing without a band, without separating the voice from her instrument, and without any studio tricks to hide behind.
“DobraSinger is a naked little roller coaster of an album, when we get to hear how good Abbie Gardner really is. By turns awkward, raucous, fragile, and forceful, it sounds like Abbie is in the room with me, maybe sharing a stage and, honestly, I don’t know how to follow her. Nobody wants to follow her.” – Jonathan Byrd, Songwriter
