Chattanooga’s favorite local indie-folk and Americana band, Call Me Spinster, composed of sisters Rachel Graber Fortin, Amelia Graber Jacobs, and Rosalie Graber, will be bringing their eclectic soundscapes and creative energy to Songbirds in Downtown Chattanooga this Wednesday, July 15th.
The trio grew up in a household with music constantly playing in the background. Their father was a folk singer-songwriter, and their mother was a chorus instructor who eventually became their high school music teacher. While they officially formed in 2017 in Chattanooga, they discovered and fell in love with music early on, when they found their grandfather Roger’s old accordion tucked away in a closet. The rest is history.
In 2019, after being seen performing a benefit gig at Lulu Lake Land Trust, they were signed to a record label here in Chattanooga by George Fontaine, where they were able to release two albums. Since then, they have gone on to become one of the most popular and fan favorite bands in Chattanooga, playing countless shows.
They grew up with eclectic tastes, too, with records ranging from piano sonatas to Paul Simon to Earth, Wind, & Fire, which helps explain why their music is so diverse and wide-ranging in sound.
Songs like “Mule” from their 2024 album Potholes feel like a true Americana anthem, with beautiful steel guitar and poignant lyrics, while songs like “Here You Are,” from their self-titled EP, are more jangly, doo-wop-sounding indie-pop jams. Other songs like “Feet Are Dirty” sound like something out of Stranger Things, infused with a psychedelic, synthy pop feel, making for a unique mix of soundscapes.
In speaking with the sisters about how their songwriting has evolved as new chapters of their lives have unfolded, they mentioned that lyrically, songs these days tackle topics like mental health in motherhood and the state of humanity, and that they have also learned a lot by collaborating with local singer-songwriter and artist Alva Leigh.
“We have had the somewhat unusual opportunity to process many pivotal midlife moments through songwriting: motherhood, early marriage, international moves and break-ups, and the shift from professionals to caregivers.
Lyrically, these days, our songs are a lot more about the mental health of motherhood and the state of the world at large. We’re developing new writing partners and inspiration. Some of the songs on both the EP and Potholes were written in partnership with Amelia’s husband, Dan, and have a certain pining nostalgia that seems very particular to their partnership.
More recently, we have learned a lot from playing in the band of local artist Alva Leigh; she writes with an amazing economy of words, in concise, traditional song structures, loves major seventh chords, and I see that showing up in our most recent songs. But as always, harmony is our happy place. And the accordion and glockenspiel will always make it in there somewhere.”
In discussing where songs usually come from and how the sisters co-collaborate, they reflected on the sometimes odd places they find songs coming to them, and that songwriting time is more precious as they balance motherhood with building the band.
“Songs usually come out of the little scraps of time we have to ourselves, so in the car or the bathtub, and usually begin as both lyrics and melody together. Usually the sister singing lead on the song was the one to bring it to the group. The other sisters might pitch in bridge or verse ideas, and we typically build instrumentation together pretty organically.
So far, songwriting time has been so precious and rare, we haven’t done a lot of culling, for better or worse. If someone is bringing an idea to the band, we turn it into a song. Maybe later projects will be more curated, but for now, our repertoire is very reflective of the emotional grab-bag that is our lives right now.”
When asked about their creative ambitions for the next few years, they detailed continuing to see music as a creative force to champion causes and purposes that matter to the sisters, while mentioning what a life line music has been for them during this phase of their life.
“We are excited to see how music can be a vehicle to champion causes and purposes that matter to us, especially as a means of social justice, education, and shedding light on perspectives that often get lost or misrepresented. Music has been such a precious lifeline to ourselves and our community during this life-phase, it feels as much a necessity as a luxury. We’re so grateful to the myriad supporters that have allowed us to keep growing inside of it.”
Call Me Spinster
- Wednesday, July 15. 7 p.m.
- Songbirds. 206 West Main Street, Chattanooga.
- $20-$31.
- venue.songbirds.org
- spinsterband.com