Voted Best Female Vocalist in the Portland Phoenix's 2010 Best Music Poll
"Before I get to the main topic of this week's column, there's something I have to get off my chest: Buy Marie Moreshead's new self-titled CD NOW. It's the best album I've heard in months, not only in terms of local music (Marie's a Portlander) but in terms of all music."
-Rod Harmon of the Portland Press Herald
"The youthful Marie Moreshead surprises listeners with her bedazzling old-school charm and folksy melodies. Getting a Phoenix nod for having last year's Best EP (Birdwatchers), and performing with top-notch acts like Ray LaMontagne and the Pete Kilpatrick Band, Moreshead's resume is growing fast. With a comforting voice that casts a siren-spell, she captivates with quaint force. Each song is carefully crafted, written to match the specific strengths of her versatile voice. And instead of just feeding us lyrics on love that's lost or yet to be found, Moreshead gives the familiar territory a much needed twist, balancing her songs between hopeful and pessimistic, confident and insecure. Her music capitalizes on her spunky-yet-quaint image, creating an intensity that hides beneath her soft-spoken lyrics."
-The Portland Phoenix
“Talented young singer/songwriters are hard to find at the level that Marie Moreshead is currently residing...”
-Thisismodern.net
“For a girl with such a professed affinity for monogamy, Marie Moreshead is a bit of a tease. On the heels of 2007's intriguing Distraction EP, she's now released a five-song EP in Birdwatchers that's bound to leave you aching for more. With a delivery like a stone skipping across a stilled lake in the morning mist and a wide-eyed outlook on the world that manages to be cynical, escapist, and endearingly naïve all at once, Moreshead is a sparkling bauble of talent that's hard not to keep peeking at.”
-Sam Pfeifle of The Portland Phoenix
“With her honest acoustic plucking and a Jewel-inspired backthroat coo, Moreshead makes her wide-eyed energy believable and her performances worthwhile. Most unlikely, she has developed an instinct for lyrical cadences, an idea that's lost on some of the best in the game.”
-Mike Olcott of The Portland Press Herald
"Marie Moreshead kicked things off with her velvety, flirty voice, with songs and lyrics that can reach right out and tug at your heart. The fact that she's super-cute, with her charming and disarming stage presence, shouldn't factor into whether or not you should buy a CD, but it can't hurt."
-Katy England of Themaineedge.com
“Portland’s been a bit in need of a new ingénue, and Marie Moreshead is built for the part.”
-Sam Pfeifle of The Portland Phoenix
“One underappreciated local release this summer was the debut of young folkie Marie Moreshead, whose “The Distraction E.P.” is one of the brightest albums to come out of Portland this year.”
-William Earl of Switch Magazine
“Marie's songwriting is very creative, very conversational, and lots of fun…[she] has a knack for vocal styling and melody, two of my favorite components of acoustic music. I can't wait to hear more from her.”
-Bob McKillop of Mainefolkmusic.com
“Moreshead's arrangements and singing have an unforced playfulness, in which the irony enhances the listener's enjoyment. She is able to convey mature self-awareness and sincerity, skillfully negotiating the space between slyness and utter plangency.”
-Deborah Murphy of The Times Record
"...Marie Moreshead, barely into her 20s, tops the list of local EPs for 2009. She's somehow managed to be a musician's songwriter and a break-your-heart starlet-in-waiting all at once, and her team-ups with Pete Kilpatrick show she knows how to keep good company."
Top 10 EPs:
Marie Moreshead, Birdwatchers
Grand Hotel, Grand Hotel
Holy Boys Danger Club, Lessons for Liars
The Goodnight Process, The Way Things Are
Pigboat, Nothing's Ever Finished
The Secret Weekend, Energy Broadcast System
Sidecar Radio, Dreadnaught Cosmonaut
Lost on Liftoff, The Brightside
Headstart!, A
Vik44, Was Never White
-Sam Pfiefle of The Portland Phoenix
