Piney Gir

Piney Gir

Piney Gir, often shortened to Piney and pronounced “gear”, is an American musician and singer from Kansas, based in London since 1998. She works mainly in indie-pop and rock, and is also described as drawing on a wide range of styles. Her career begins in synth pop and develops into a long solo catalogue alongside work in several bands and collaborations.

Early life and training

She grows up in the Bible Belt of the Midwest United States, with limited access to secular music and culture. She takes piano lessons from the age of four and sings in church each week. As a teenager, she turns towards a broad range of music. She later studies at the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance, where she majors in music, first playing drums and pitched percussion before changing to voice.

Move to London and solo career

After moving to London, she studies at Central Saint Martins and takes night classes while working temp jobs during the day and in bars and clubs at night. She joins the synth pop duo Vic Twenty, which releases a single on Credible Sexy Units, the Mute Records subsidiary, and tours the UK and Europe with Erasure. At Truck Festival, she is spotted playing the Trailer Park Stage and receives a record deal in 2003, beginning her solo career as Piney Gir.

She releases seven studio albums. Her solo work is associated with edgy indie-pop, and her versatility leads to descriptions of her as a musical chameleon and as “the indie Dolly Parton” and “Transatlantic Pop Guru”. She tours extensively in the UK, Europe and the United States and appears at major festivals including Glastonbury, where she plays the Park Stage, and South by Southwest. She also has support slots with Gaz Coombes, Ride, Erasure, Wanda Jackson, The Hidden Cameras and The Research.

Bands and projects

Alongside her solo work, Piney Gir is involved in a number of bands and side projects. Piney Gir Country Roadshow forms after a promoter asks her to play a working men’s club in London alongside an alt-country band. She responds by forming a country version of her music with friends, reworking songs from her debut album Peakahokahoo. The group includes Dave Howell, Dave Fisher, Simon Byrt and Ian Kellett, records two albums and tours for five years.

She is also a member of punk-rock girl band The Schla La Las, released by Truck Records, and is one half of Fly By Pony, released by Tummy Touch Records. Other projects include the Kraftwerk-inspired synth quartet Funsize Lions, recorder group The Zoltan Kodaly School For Girls, which supports Ash and The Futureheads, and the Orff Orchestra, released by Guided Missile.

Collaborations and guest work

Piney Gir collaborates with a wide range of musicians. She works with Andy Ramsay of Stereolab, Rob Campanella of The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Eamon Hamilton of Brakes and British Sea Power, Sweet Baboo, Willie J Healey, Angela Correa of Correatown, The Real Tuesday Weld and Simple Kid. She sings in Gaz Coombes’s band and with Noel Gallagher, and also sings with Garth Hudson of The Band. She regularly performs with Dream Themes and Ralfe Band, both live and on record.

Her guest appearances include singing on the Corona virus-themed Disco album Stayin’ Alive with Rhodri Marsden, appearing as a backing singer on Danny Goffey’s solo album, and singing on Lawrence’s Go-Kart Mozart project. She also records a duet with MC Lars called “Internet Relationships”, produced by A Scholar and A Physician, and appears on the Dusty Sound System album with members of Goldrush. She sings and co-writes with Damon Minchella of Ocean Colour Scene, Steve White of the Style Council and Paul Weller’s band.