Reviews
“In a brooding sea of inscrutable urban songwriters, her whispery, knowable voice feels like it’s sharing her secrets with us. Set to elegant, free-floating melodies that feel both modern and rooted, her lyrics are always seeking, if not actually finding, hope at the end of life’s dark tunnels.”
— The Boston Globe
“One of those works that quietly gets under your skin...nakedly intimate lyrics, and muted, bittersweet melodies”
- Dirty Linen
“Young American singer/songwriter Meg’s debut album on Red House ‘Come Up Full’ marked her out as one of the strongest new artists on the contemporary folk scene, and since then she’s quickly and quietly gone on to be one of the standard bearers for this generation. She is a fine writer of introspective songs with memorable lyrics and a real mastery of metaphor; she’s able to paint a vivid picture with poetic efficiency, and her sweet, down-to-earth alto is the perfect vehicle for the lyrics. Of all the young artists in the contemporary folk scene, Meg is the epitome of the New England singer/songwriter with songs that are instantly likeable, but that still ask questions and leave enough room in the songs for the listener to form their own opinion… Wherever you look, this is an album full of craft, love and attention to the smallest detail and one that anyone who appreciates thoughtful and thought-provoking artists should have in their collection. Not to be missed.”
— Fish Records
“These are good songs, honest songs, and borne of an artistry musicians strive toward but seldom achieve… eleven outstanding compositions… songs so close to the heart you can feel it beat… Over the years, Meg Hutchinson has honed her craft well and leaves interpretation to the listener. She trusts that we have the intelligence to feel if nothing else, and to know or to try to find out what we feel. It is a breath of fresh air.”
— Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange
“Pack Up Your Sorrows feels very much like a conversation with Meg, which is the very thing she believes is key to eradicating the shame, fear, and discrimination that often keep people suffering in isolation and prevent them from seeking help early – or at all. There’s a ripple effect here: the sooner treatment begins, the better the chances of limiting, or preventing, common outcomes of the unmanaged illness, including job loss, addiction, and strained support networks of family and friends..” Read More
— MassHumanities
“In Meg Hutchinson’s universe, there is no useful distance between the personal and the political.”
— The Boston Globe
“What resonates most profoundly in listening to the record, is Hutchinson’s growth as an artist and as a person. She’s seeking uncharted territory on this new record, the subject matter of the songs taking her to places she hasn’t been before on previous albums. If you can even call them songs. So many of the tracks here feel like profound meditations, like nondenominational prayers. With a poet’s eye, Hutchinson captures so beautifully that human journey toward peace, toward forgiveness, toward acceptance – and all this in less than an hour from the first track to the epilogue. This record is best listened to in one sitting. And then another. And another….”
— Performing Songwriter
“A must-have for any Buddhist singer-songwriter aficionado…Her compassion shines through in lyrics like, “Inmates down in the courtyard, so close that I can feel /So much rage and hope and grief, and this dream of getting free.”Hutchinson sees herself and perhaps all of us, simultaneously as prisoners and agents holding the keys to our liberation… Throughout the CD’s trajectory is an unwavering commitment to stay, to observe rather than to judge… Hutchinson’s natural voice allows her to deliver an honest performance of nuanced, political writing. Hutchinson’s autobiographical writing style lends itself to intimacy but remains broad in scope. Attend carefully to this patchwork of personal prayers for redemption from a rising voice.”
— Lion’s Roar & Shambhala Sun
“Hutchinson’s refreshingly rancor-free compositions demonstrate that music can be soft without being gutless.”
— Vintage Guitar
“This young Boston singer-songwriter compares favourably to urbane American country-folk artists such as Mary Chapin Carpenter and Dar Williams...and delivers her songs in a breathy alto wrapped around allusive lyrics of melancholy and loss.”
— Winnipeg Free Press
“Meg’s songs require repeated listening – they are intimate low key affairs, emotionally honest, reflecting the struggles of her personal life but on Beyond that it is immediately clear there has been a significant shift, that this is an album about transformation. It could be called a song cycle in that the songs seem to evolve and flow into each other seamlessly, the end of each track almost unnoticeable. There is a new found serenity throughout… Several of the songs could be addressed both to a personal lover and a spiritual teacher. Coming home, transforming desire, these themes are ever present through this song cycle. The meditative, sometimes ecstatic, quality reflects the fact that not only does Meg work in the field of mental health advocacy but has now studied and practices meditation and yoga. Her interests lie in bringing these together through her own creativity as a way of finding inner peace and freedom… This is a wonderful celebratory album which shows the journey of recovery and of listening is a never ending one.”
— Urthona Journal of Buddhism & the Arts
“A chronicler of the human condition with a poet’s lyrical sensibility, Hutchinson is a unique, fearless songwriter whose work is vivid and transformative… Meg Hutchinson writes like Joni Mitchell used to and Springsteen still does, and she sings like an Americana godsend. From the opening lines of this intense, lyrical album… the Boston-resident spins ballads of introspection and challenge… simple, brilliant and elegant. Meg Hutchinson presents contemporary folk music that is progressive but grounded.”
— Fervor Coulee
“Ploughing new sonic territory, Meg delivers a serene masterpiece… Beyond That is an ethereal symphony, replete with words that finely balance loss, hope and optimism”
— Maverick Magazine
“Organic, poetic narratives, each one communicating the singer-songwriter’s keen and descriptive observations of life, love and loss.”
— PopMatters
“A master of introspective ballads filled with understated yearning and an exquisite sense of metaphor, Hutchinson delivers her songs with a gently affecting poetic grace.”
— Performing Songwriter
“This lyrically-driven artist brings her soft and eloquent vocals to a series of poetic stories... pulling at every heart string imaginable.”
— Out Impact
“Growth is at the heart of “Beyond That,” Hutchinson’s latest album on Red House Records that nudges her gently into more elastic territory….The tension between Hutchinson’s voice, an organic instrument that emulates both a twang and a croon, and the album’s electronic flourishes is especially arresting …”
-James Reed The Boston Globe
“Meg got me with the first words of the first track titled Hard to Change: “Train whistling home in the dark—-Christmas lights up in the trailer park.” With those very spare words I have both audio and visual cues. She went on like that—-supplying multi-dimensional images in a song about class and economic justice. I didn’t need the second song to decide we were going to have her on the show, but after that first, I longed to hear them all. None of them disappointed me.” Listen to the 2014 interview here.
— Bob Edwards -XM Satellite Radio
Highlights from 2010 Interview:
“The songs are beautifully written -- direct and true. She captures the ecstasy and terror -- the mystery, the blessing and curse… Meg's songs are ripe with canny, unexpected passages and rhymes. "Cold morning in the Midwest, winter earth in a wedding dress." I'll be recommending this album to friends and readers alike.”