by Jessica Harp

Dentonite-gone-Brooklyn gal Sarah Renfro chats with Jessica Harp about NX35 mania and the differences between the two Indie capitols.

DENTON — Just imagine: You walk up to the local watering hole to quench your thirst. The bar is dark with a laid back ambiance, the room is abuzz with students from the nearby college, and a lone woman walks to the stage. She begins to play her instrument of choice and starts singing into the microphone. The entire bar is now silently watching the young woman sing, giving everything she can muster with the poise of a seasoned performer.

That is exactly what happened when Brooklyn-based -- and former Denton musician -- Sarah Renfro last performed at Dan’s Silverleaf. The whole room had their eyes on her. She commanded everyone’s attention with her music and her low, smooth voice, and from start to finish she had every person in the venue hanging on to every note and every word.

Renfro hopes to reproduce what happened at Dan’s when she performs this Saturday night at The Hydrant in Denton for the second annual NX35 Conferette, which will also serve as her EP release so perfectly titled You Should Be Somewhere Outside.

I was lucky enough to catch Renfro a few hours after she landed in Dallas and talk to her about her life in Brooklyn, her music, and the festival itself.

What do you think about NX35?

I think it is awesome. It is definitely a step in the right direction for Denton. It feels like the next right move.

How did you get involved?

I had some friends who played in it last year and they told me how cool and fun it was, and I submitted and got chosen for this year.

Michal Garcia

Sarah Renfro

What can the audience expect from your performance Saturday night? Will you be playing most of the songs on your EP -- or something new perhaps?

I will be performing a lot of new stuff. Maybe like half the songs that are on the EP, and a lot of new stuff.

I really liked your cover of Radiohead’s “Creep” that you performed at Dan’s Silverleaf, will you be performing that?

I might. I will do it!

What about that one song, I remember it being about the church and a pastor? I can’t remember the name, but really loved it.

Oh, “Dirty Like Puddles.” We were wondering if we should do that one. Now I do it with Fluegel and violin. Like is it going to sound empty with just me and Zack? But yeah, if you want to hear it we will play it.

How crazy is NYC compared to Denton?

Right now I feel nervous. Like I am in the eye of the storm here because it is so quiet. I expected it to be chaotic. I keep hearing that Denton is going to blow up, but now that I am here it feels comfy and chill -- compared to New York which is always crazy and there are always like 10 people behind you, ready to knock you down.

How would you define or label your music?

It is hard because a lot of my songs are really different from each other, especially the new stuff compared to the EP stuff. The new stuff is more like PJ Harvey. While recording the EP I was listening to Cat Power’s cover record. I was listening to that a lot when I recorded it. That was kind of what made me feel that I could record it. I didn’t feel like I was a good enough piano player at the time. Then I heard her record, which was really simple, stripped down songs. Just her. It was gorgeous and the simplicity of it was perfect. So that was originally what it was going to be, just me and a piano. As time went on, I just added more and more stuff, but it kind of came from that simplicity. I would say that it is, even with the arrangements, I have always got a minimalistic idea coming from it. Like I don’t want to put too much ever, and I would say that less is more.

Jessica Harp is a music journalist based in Denton.