Shannon Lay

Lay grew up in Redondo Beach, California, a second-generation Irish-American, and started playing guitar at age 13. She left Redondo Beach for Los Angeles when she was 17 years old. She was the lead guitarist in the band Facts on File, and later joined Raw Geronimo, who changed their name to Feels after several members left and others joined. Feels released two albums with Lay as a member: Feels (2016) and Post Earth (2019).{{cite web|url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/feels-feels|title=Feels serve up the sweetest scuzz|date=February 25, 2016|accessdate=March 8, 2020|work=The Line of Best Fit|first=Grant|last=Rindner}}{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/feels-post-earth/|title=FEELS: Post Earth|date=February 22, 2019|accessdate=March 8, 2020|work=Pitchfork|first=Stuart|last=Berman}} Lay left Feels in January 2020.{{cite web|url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/news/latest-news/feels-reveal-shannon-lay-has-left-the-band|title=FEELS reveal Shannon Lay has left the band|date=January 3, 2020|accessdate=March 4, 2020|work=The Line of Best Fit|first=Cerys|last=Kenneally}} She is also a member of the Freedom Band, Ty Segall's backing band.

She has cited The Damned, Stephen Malkmus, Nick Drake, Negative Approach, the Ramones, Slayer, The Velvet Underground and X as influences.

Lay's debut recording, Holy Heartache (2015), is a collection of 16 demos recorded at home.{{cite web|url=https://www.laweekly.com/both-sides-now-with-shannon-lay/|title=Both sides now with Shannon Lay|date=September 13, 2018|accessdate=February 26, 2020|work=LA Weekly|last=Falling James}} In 2018 she described it as "just me putting songs on Bandcamp," and commented "It never felt like an official release."

All This Life Going Down was released in 2016. Simon Weedn of the L.A. Record described the album as "one of the most beautifully delicate bedroom-pop albums one might hope to hear", praised its intimacy and observed that "There is never a moment that passes where it doesn’t feel like Lay is in the room, performing these songs by herself."{{cite web|url=https://larecord.com/album-reviews/2017/02/11/shannon-lay-all-this-life-goin-down-album-review|title=Shannon Lay: All This Life Goin Down|date=February 11, 2017|accessdate=March 8, 2020|work=L.A. Record|first=Simon|last=Weedn}}

Living Water was released in 2017 by Mare Records, an imprint of Woodsist founded by Kevin Morby specifically in order to release the album.{{cite web|url=https://i-d.co/article/meet-shannon-lay-a-simpsons-super-fan-crafting-beautifully-tender-folk-tunes/|title=Meet Shannon Lay, a 'Simpsons' super-fan crafting beautifully tender folk tunes|date=September 20, 2017|access-date=March 8, 2020|work=Vice|first=Emily|last=Manning}}

Writing in The Straits Times, Yeow Kai Chai compared Living Water to Nick Drake's Pink Moon and Vashti Bunyan's Just Another Diamond Day and wrote: "With an observant eye for nature's ways and an ear for the rhythms of the heart, [Lay] intuits life's bountiful lessons."{{cite web|url=https://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/entertainment/lifes-bountiful-lessons|title=Shannon Lay's intoxicating Living Water|date=October 11, 2017|accessdate=March 4, 2020|work=The Straits Times|first=Yeow Kai|last=Chai|authorlink=Yeow Kai Chai}} Philip Sherburne of Pitchfork praised "Home" as "a good glimpse of what makes Lay’s music special" and argued that "Living Water is shot through with a kind of ragged hope—not optimism, exactly, but a determined belief in the power of that life force to pull us all toward something like transcendence."{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/shannon-lay-living-water/|title=Shannon Lay: Living Water|date=September 25, 2017|accessdate=March 4, 2020|work=Pitchfork|first=Philip|last=Sherburne}}

In 2018, Lay released a live session recorded for Audiotree featuring three songs from Living Water, two from All This Life Going Down and two previously unreleased songs.{{cite web|url=https://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/entertainment/spectral-quality-with-urban-toughness|title=Spectral quality with urban toughness|date=November 15, 2018|accessdate=March 8, 2020|work=The Straits Times|first=Yeow Kai|last=Chai|authorlink=Yeow Kai Chai}}

August, Lay's first album as a full-time musician after quitting her day job and her first album for Sub Pop, was released in 2019.{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/august-mw0003283364|title=Shannon Lay: August|accessdate=February 26, 2020|work=AllMusic|first=Mark|last=Deming}}{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/shannon-lay-august/|title=Shannon Lay: August|date=August 27, 2019|accessdate=March 6, 2020|work=Pitchfork|first=Erin|last=Osmon}} It was co-produced by Lay and Ty Segall and features a wider array of instrumentation than her previous albums.

Mark Deming of AllMusic noted that the more complex sound did not come at the expense of a sense of intimacy, and wrote that "she creates tunes with a simple grace that's a superb match for the lyrics which revel in the glorious mysteries of the world around us. And it's welcome to hear a contemporary artist who so comfortably embraces their folkie side without a sense of irony and with both feet planted firmly in reality". Pitchfork{{'}}s Erin Osmon praised "Death Up Close" and "November" and argued that Lay's "vision is clear-eyed, poetic, and for all the ways she channels the greats ... she also chisels her own name in the canon". Writing in Clash, Wilf Skinner commented that "August is best at its most meditative, even if its gravity belies a certain goofiness", and described the album as "more self-assured and hopeful" than Living Water;{{cite web|url=https://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/shannon-lay-august|title=Shannon Lay – August|date=August 21, 2019|accessdate=March 6, 2020|work=Clash|first=Wilf|last=Skinner}} while Hannah Siden of Exclaim! praised Lay's "unusual choices in some places – playing with tempo, dynamics and instrumentals" and assessed the album as "hypnotic, assured" and "at its best when it locks into moments of relaxed momentum, buoyed by gently driving, repetitive instrumentals".{{cite web|url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/shannon_lay-august|title=Shannon Lay: August|date=August 20, 2019|accessdate=March 6, 2020|work=Exclaim!|first=Hannah|last=Siden}}

In December 2019, Lay released "Blue" and "We Mend" through the Sub Pop Singles Club.{{cite web|url=https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/news/latest-news/shannon-lay-drops-new-tracks-blue-and-we-mend-for-sub-pops-singles-club|title=Shannon Lay drops new tracks 'Blue' and 'We Mend' for Sub Pop's Singles Club|date=December 12, 2019|accessdate=March 4, 2020|work=The Line of Best Fit|first=Cerys|last=Kenneally}} In June 2020, Lay collaborated with Steve Gunn to cover Blaze Foley's "Clay Pigeons" as a fundraiser for the Black Visions Collective.{{cite web|url=https://www.brooklynvegan.com/60-specialexclusive-releases-for-todays-bandcamp-fundraiser/|title=80+ special/exclusive releases for today's Bandcamp fundraiser|accessdate=June 5, 2020|work=BrooklynVegan|date=5 June 2020 }}

Geist' was released on October 8, 2021.{{cite web|url=https://ourculturemag.com/2021/07/14/shannon-lay-announces-new-album-geist-shares-new-tracks/|title=Shannon Lay Announces New Album 'Geist', Shares New Tracks|date=July 14, 2021|accessdate=July 28, 2021|work=Our Culture Mag|first=Konstantinos|last=Pappis}} The album features collaborations with Devra Hoff and Ty Segall,{{cite web|url=https://www.undertheradarmag.com/news/shannon_lay_announces_new_album_shares_new_songs_awaken_and_allow_and_geist|title=Shannon Lay Announces New Album, Shares New Songs 'Awaken and Allow' and 'Geist'|date=July 14, 2021|access-date=July 28, 2021|work=Under the Radar|first=Mark|last=Redfern}} and is produced by Lay and Jarvis Taveniere.{{cite web|url=https://www.uncut.co.uk/features/interviews/shannon-lay-geist-2021-album-ty-segall-134227/|title=Shannon Lay on new album Geist: 'The beliefs I had about myself were crumbling. Everything was shattering'|date=October 6, 2021|access-date=October 7, 2021|work=Uncut|first=Erin|last=Osmon}} The album features a cover of Syd Barrett's "Late Night".{{cite web|url=https://www.undertheradarmag.com/interviews/shannon_lay_on_geist_and_taking_things_slow|title=Shannon Lay on 'Geist' and Taking Things Slow|date=October 6, 2021|access-date=October 7, 2021|work=Under the Radar|first=Mark|last=Moody}} "Rare to Wake" is inspired by Frank Herbert's novel Dune.{{cite web|url=https://www.spin.com/2021/10/shannon-lay-geist-interview/|title=Shannon Lay Is Doing This for Herself|date=7 October 2021|access-date=October 8, 2021|work=Spin|first=Grant|last=Sharples}}

Reviewing Geist for Pitchfork, Emma Madden described the album as "the sound of an artist seeing themselves—their personality and temperament—reflected back to them for the first time" and likened Lay's role on the album to that of "a spiritual guide, kindly and patiently directing the listener towards their own sense of inner tranquility."{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/shannon-lay-geist/|title=Shannon Lay: Geist|date=October 12, 2021|access-date=October 17, 2021|work=Pitchfork|first=Emma|last=Madden}} Pitchfork later listed "Rare to Wake" as one of the 100 best songs of 2021.{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/best-songs-2021/|title=The 100 Best Songs of 2021|date=December 6, 2021|access-date=December 8, 2021|work=Pitchfork}} Ben Niesen of Atwood Magazine wrote that Geist "documents [Lay's] continued transformation into a bona fide singer/songwriter", noted the influence of Celtic music and the work of Anne Briggs, and likened tracks to songs by Brian Eno, Bert Jansch and Joni Mitchell.{{cite web|url=https://atwoodmagazine.com/slgs-shannon-lay-geist-interview-music-2021/|title=Interview: Shannon Lay Finds Her Superpower on 'Geist'|date=October 26, 2021|access-date=November 5, 2021|work=Atwood Magazine|first=Ben|last=Niesen}} Writing in The Guardian, Kitty Empire described Geist as "even more assured and contemplative" than August, noted the album's theme of the relationship between forward motion and personal growth, and praised the album's instrumentation.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/ng-interactive/2021/nov/02/self-esteem-sam-fender-and-more-novembers-best-album-reviews#Geist|title=Shannon Lay: Geist|date=October 17, 2021|access-date=November 12, 2021|work=The Guardian|first=Kitty|last=Empire|author-link=Kitty Empire}} Identifying the album as one of a number of "standout albums from the new singer-songwriter movement" released during the COVID-19 pandemic, Daniel de Visé of Spin described its songs as "some of the most starkly beautiful folk guitar figures put to vinyl since Nick Drake plucked his last."{{cite news|url=https://www.spin.com/2022/09/six-great-singer-songwriter-albums/|title=

I Write the Songs...|date=September 13, 2022|access-date=September 19, 2022|work=Spin|first=Daniel|last=de Visé}}

Lay released a covers album, entitled Covers Vol. 1 and featuring versions of songs by Vashti Bunyan, Arthur Russell, Ty Segall, The Velvet Underground and others, in April 2023.{{cite news|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/shannon-lay-covers-elliott-smith-angeles-for-new-album-listen/|title=Shannon Lay Covers Elliott Smith's 'Angeles' for New Album: Listen|date=February 23, 2023|access-date=March 5, 2023|work=Pitchfork|first=Evan|last=Minsker}} Mark Moody of Under the Radar described Covers Vol. 1 as offering a valuable insight into Lay's influences, and described covers of Sibylle Baier's "I Lost Something in the Hills" and Osees's "I Am Slow" as "tracks that stand out the most for providing the listener the least to grab onto."{{cite web|url=https://www.undertheradarmag.com/reviews/covers_vol_1_shannon_lay|title=Shannon Lay: Covers Vol. 1|date=April 10, 2023|access-date=April 17, 2023|work=Under the Radar|first=Mark|last=Moody}} Stephen M. Deusner of Pitchfork argued that the album's covers "rely on subtle changes", not only cataloging Lay's influences but also demonstrating "how she continues to live with them", and praised Lay's versions of songs by peers such as Ty Segall's "The Keeper".{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/shannon-lay-covers-vol-1/|title=Covers Vol. 1: Shannon Lay|date=April 18, 2023|access-date=April 25, 2023|work=Pitchfork|first=Stephen M.|last=Deusner}}

Lay appears on Devra Hoff's album Voices from the Empty Moor (Songs of Anne Briggs) (2021), a tribute to the English folk singer Anne Briggs,{{cite web|url=https://www.undertheradarmag.com/news/premiere_devin_hoff_debuts_cover_of_anne_briggs_go_your_way_feat._sharon_va|title=Premiere: Devin Hoff Debuts Cover of Anne Briggs' 'Go Your Way' feat. Sharon Van Etten|date=September 14, 2021|access-date=September 18, 2021|work=Under the Radar|first=Caleb|last=Campbell}}{{cite web|url=https://www.folkradio.co.uk/2021/11/devin-hoff-voices-from-the-empty-moor-songs-of-anne-briggs/|title=Devin Hoff – Voices From the Empty Moor (Songs of Anne Briggs)|date=November 19, 2021|access-date=November 20, 2021|work=Folk Radio UK|first=Thomas|last=Blake}} and Ezra Furman's song "Point Me Toward the Real" (2022).{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/news/ezra-furman-announces-tour-shares-new-song-point-me-toward-the-real-listen/|title=Ezra Furman Announces Tour, Shares New Song 'Point Me Toward the Real': Listen|date=March 1, 2022|access-date=March 4, 2022|work=Pitchfork|first=Evan|last=Minsker}} In April 2024, Lay released "Mirrors" as a standalone single.{{cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/2260869/shannon-lay-mirrors/music/|title=Shannon Lay – 'Mirrors'|date=April 24, 2024|access-date=May 1, 2024|work=Stereogum|first=Chris|last=DeVille}}

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Category:1991 births

Category:21st-century American women guitarists

Category:21st-century American women singers

Category:American folk guitarists

Category:American punk rock guitarists

Category:American folk singers

Category:Sub Pop artists

Category:Musicians from Redondo Beach, California

Category:Living people

Category:American people of Irish descent