Anaïs Mitchell On World Cafe

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Anais Mitchell has a penchant for storied poetry and a deep reverence for the expressiveness of folk music.

Courtesy of the artist

Anais Mitchell has a penchant for storied poetry and a deep reverence for the expressiveness of folk music.

Courtesy of the artist

Vermont folk singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell's confessional ballads and strong, emotive singing have earned her comparisons to Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan and Gillian Welch. Since her 2002 debut, she's added five more albums to her discography and collaborated with the likes of Ani DiFranco, Justin Vernon and Ben Knox Miller of The Low Anthem.

Mitchell shuttles deftly between genres, displaying a penchant for narrative poetry and a deep reverence for the expressiveness of folk. Her latest record, the operatic Young Man In America, is woven with a theme of social responsibility. It is also one of her most critically acclaimed albums. Inspired by scenes of struggle in our economic crisis, Mitchell has evolved her protest music into something more allegorical and applicable to any time period.