Press
“Katie Dahl has built a reputation for mixing unflinching authenticity with a disarming wit.”
“Breathtaking . . . painstakingly honest songs.”
“Seven Stones is a collection of stories both plainspoken and profound. With a voice that ranges from deep and resonant to clear and ringing, Dahl fearlessly explores and incisively arrives at the heart of the many human struggles that rage on inside us . . . a poignantly joyful collection of deeply personal, moving insights.”
“Katie Dahl’s newest release, Seven Stones, is honest and open, emotive, and at times so real the music feels tangible.”
“Katie Dahl’s fifth studio album, Wildwood, is the Wisconsin singer-songwriter’s most stirring collection to date. It’s also a deeply felt homage to the county Dahl’s family has called home for seven generations…. Wildwood’s 11 songs are about family and friends, land and love, history and highways. She delivers razor-sharp lyrics with a hearty, soulful voice.”
“Katie Dahl makes a big sound that pours forth from a gentle soul on Seven Stones. The songs are smooth but never slick, weighty but not hard – as beautifully played and sung as they are written. Katie’s very personal message is that we are all right just as we are. Wrap your ears around her honesty.”
Marilyn Rea Beyer, WFMT’s The Midnight Special
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“Katie Dahl’s music combines a love for her rural midwestern roots, a droll wit, and a clear-eyed appraisal of modern life, all served up in a voice as rich as cream.”
Iowa Public Radio
“Katie Dahl . . . combine[s] old-fashioned populism, an abiding love of the land and wickedly smart love songs, all delivered in a rich and expressive alto.”
“Poetic lyrics made even more evocative by gorgeous melodies and lovely guitar picking. Katie Dahl’s low, rich voice is the real deal, and you can feel her love for the land, lakes and people of the Upper Midwest in every song.”
“[Katie Dahl’s] creamy alto should suit the taste of anyone already an aficionado of Mary Chapin Carpenter . . . enchanting.”
“Sophisticated without putting on airs.”
“Imagine songs wrapped in a plaid flannel shirt and delivered with deep velvet vocals that evoke a tapestry of American scenes and people. That’s Katie Dahl you’re hearing, weaving the stories of her life – and yours. She is the quintessential real deal. Don’t ever miss a chance to see or hear her. Ever.”
Peer Quotes
“Katie Dahl’s songs aren’t just melodies and words, they’re journeys that are firmly grounded in a sense of place—beautiful, real landscapes that help you feel places that you may have never been before. That’s the very best kind of songwriting.”
Dar Williams
“Smart, beautifully crafted songs and a fabulous production. What a joy to sing with Katie Dahl on her gorgeous new record.”
Eliza Gilkyson
“Katie Dahl makes good music- the songs are wise and steady, and make a case for the plain beauty of the everyday. In unsettled times she brings us a grounded spirit.”
Peter Mulvey
“Katie Dahl is the real deal. She’s a ‘regional’ artist the way Robert Frost is a regional artist, meaning everybody in the world can appreciate the way she captures the spirit of a place–and the generations of humans who’ve lived, loved and died there–with such grace, nuance and grit.”
JT Nero (Birds of Chicago)
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“Smart, tough-minded and positive, Katie Dahl’s work is grounded in a place—Door County, Wisconsin—and its community. But her songs are for everyone. A rock-solid musician and rigorous poet, her songs unfold with equal measures of inevitability and surprise—compassion’s welcome dart to the heart.”
Andrew Calhoun, Waterbug Records
“Katie Dahl has a keen eye for the life of the heart and the life of the world. She also has a sharp pen, a strong voice, and the intelligence, compassion and musical sensibility to write and perform songs that are a pure joy to hear. Katie makes me see, feel and think about things that are real, and gives me good laughs, heart-tugs and inspiration along the way. . . . A singer-songwriter you need to get to know.”
Parker J. Palmer (author of A Hidden Wholeness, Let Your Life Speak, and The Courage to Teach)
“Katie Dahl is a honey-throated alto thrush and an eagle-eyed songwriter.”
Claudia Russell
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Accolades
2023
Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artists Showcase
#2 Album, Folk Radio Charts
2019
#4 Album, Folk Radio Charts
2017
#15 Album/#25 Song, Folk Radio Charts
2015
Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artists Showcase
#1 Song/#6 Album Folk Radio Charts
Folk Festival on WDCB #1 Album of 2015
Top 30 Albums of 2015, Indiana Public Radio
2013
Great River Folk Festival Songwriting Contest, 2nd Place
2012
Indiana Public Radio WVPE Top 25 Albums of 2012
Wisconsin Singer-Songwriter Series Songwriting Contest, 2nd Place
2010
Big Top Chautauqua Songwriter of the Year