A writer of fictions

Singer-songwriter Marissa Nadler has built a reputation for herself as a purveyor of reverb-drenched, folk-infused ballads. While studying painting at the Rhode Island School of Design, Nadler found herself increasingly turning to songwriting to provide an artistic outlet.  

A self-taught musician, Nadler had developed her unique finger-picking style of guitar starting in her teens, but it was not until she began an intensive fine arts education that she discovered that songs were her medium of choice—she describes herself as drawn to songwriting “like a moth to flame,” channeling everyone from Johnny Cash to Edgar Allan Poe.

Nadler has built up a steady following with her regular touring, and has released four albums since 2004, when Eclipse Records released the first collection of her home recordings. Nadler’s most recent album, Little Hells, sees her building on the ideas of her first three albums.

“The flowers died a long time ago, my friend / and they’re hanging on the wall / with wax and thread,” Nadler sings on “The Whole Is Wide.” In the same track, she laments needing a man to “see [her] through,” as she sings to a cast of single female characters, including Layla, whose husband “died in a firey crash,” and Silvia, who “wears the finest eyelet dress and sits in her room painting golden runes.”

“I have recurring characters,” Nadler says. “Most of the people in my songs are real people set to make believe times and places. My work does have an overall underlying theme that I think comes through in the songs themselves.”

Her intricate storylines and bizarre fairy-tale worlds (more reminiscent of Pan’s Labyrinth than Disney) combine with Nadler’s otherworldly voice to create something quite special. Nadler is an old-fashioned storyteller—think Faulkner by way of Johanna Newsome.

While on her past albums, her voice has mostly been paired with reverb and subsequently employed to create atmosphere, on Little Hells, Nadler departs from her usual brand of ethereal, atmospheric folk to create somewhat more straightforward rock songs.

While there were subtle synths on her debut, here Nadler employs them and other electric toys in full force. Little Hells also features a full band on some tracks—another new addition. For Nadler’s Portland appearance at the Doug Fir, she will be playing with an accompanying band.

“Sometimes I play solo, but the Portland show will have a full band, so [the songs] will sound even more full live. My setlist for this tour has a lot of songs off of Little Hells,” Nadler said.

Nadler traffics in miniatures—self-contained narratives that offer a glimpse into imaginary worlds that are well worth visiting.