At first listen Liz Fullerton’s dusky and sonorous voice is eerily evocative; often described as “haunting” and redolent of the whispered fragments of dreams that slip from memory upon wakening. The sensual chorister is the vocal embodiment of the enigmatic duo known as Dutch, a new collaboration whose foundation is firmly constructed by one of the most highly respected Hip Hop producers in the game: Stoupe the Enemy of Mankind. As the production mastermind behind the influential Jedi Mind Tricks, Stoupe’s doom-laden backdrops have been lauded for almost two decades for being innovative, intensely dark and bombastic. Now, with the arrival of Dutch, Stoupe brings his musical intuition to a new level, creating an atmospheric, eclectic diatribe of lilting beats and brooding samples that perfectly complement Fullerton’s dolorous, empathic compositions. Both producer and songstress are the unlikeliest of partners; he is the quintessential behind-the-boards composer who is content to create in shadow while she is the open-hearted confessor.

“It’s just amazing the way we’ve come together musically,” explains Liz. “When we began this project I was so nervous. I wasn’t living in Philly at the time, so all the ideas and the music went back and forth over the internet. It wasn’t the easiest way to create; Stoupe is very protective of his music. The whole project started over AIM. We began IMing each other beats and I would record over them and mail them back. The whole thing was crazy. Stoupe was really nervous about sending stuff over the internet. He was afraid it would get lost or leaked. He would send me like just a cymbal, a hi-hat and a bell and would tell me to write a song off that,” she says, laughing. “When it came time to record I was very intimidated by him. Stoupe is such an incredibly gifted musician, and when you look at the music he’s produced… Jedi Mind Tricks is about a million miles away from the kind of stuff I do. I write sad, folk-y, songs on my acoustic guitar…”

The album is a snapshot in frames of a life full of wandering. Lyrically Liz is an invitation to a journey; her tales of displacement come from years of traveling extensively and living in some spiritually inspiring places. She brings all of this into her songs. One constant motif runs throughout: the inimitable voice of Liz Fullerton. It is a genuinely unique entity that brands her music with its celestial quality. It is both a throwback to the sultry sirens of another era and homage to celebrated trip-hop artists like Portishead. Fullerton’s voice is a mesmerizing beam of intense sadness that comes from a deep place within her. She has the ability to texture her voice in sympathetic symphony with what her lyrics are expressing. She easily navigates smooth transitions between low-throated tones and fully-flexed vocal acrobatics. It is a sound borne of travel and sight; advance and retreat, light and dark. The sadness belies the bubbly, warm person that Liz is when she is not singing.

“I write about my life, it’s really the only thing I have to tell,” Fullerton understates with simplicity.

A Bright Cold Day is an album that spent years in the making. The story begins with Jedi Mind Tricks frontman Vinnie Paz searching for a new voice with which to collaborate on JMT’s Servants in Heaven, Kings in Hell LP. While on tour, a mutual friend slipped a demo CD of Fullerton’s songs to the group. As Liz recalls, the response was lukewarm from the bulk of the group. Except for Paz, who immediately latched on to something in her voice.

“I owe so much to Vinnie,” says Liz. “From what I heard they were looking for a female singer to collaborate with. Our friend Brad gave them this janky, homemade CD of some of my songs and I think both Yan (of Enemy Soil Records, the label owned by Vinnie Paz) and Stoupe wanted to keep looking, but Vinnie said ‘No, this is the voice I want.’ If it hadn’t been for him I never would have even gotten started doing this. Vinnie is a genius when it comes to, not only making, but finding music; he has such an incredible ear. I can’t say enough about him.”

That find led to the initial collaboration between Fullerton and the Jedi Mind Tricks camp: a track entitled “Razorblade Salvation” featured Liz singing behind Paz’s very personal verses. The song was critically praised for its honesty and lyrical inventiveness. It came out so well that a project featuring Liz and The Enemy of Mankind was quickly outlined and set into motion. The only problem was Liz was living in California at the time while Stoupe is a Philly head, born and bred. The solution? Liz came to Philly.

“I’ve really come to love this city and I didn’t at first. Something about the people; the straight-forwardness that you find in South Philadelphia is amazing. The musical community is overwhelmingly supportive, almost to the point where it could be considered unhealthy. Everyone comes to everyone’s shows, but sometimes I feel that there isn’t that drive, that healthy competitive push that can really inspire you to create and to become better. Still, it’s better than having that non-committal reaction you see in so many other music communities.”

With A Bright Cold Day being simultaneously launched the same day as Enemy Soil, both the label and the group hit the ground running. Critical acclaim for the album has been off the charts, with heavy support coming from independent radio stations like Philadelphia’s WXPN and similar alternative stations across the country.

“What I really love is when people who hear the record tell me how much I sound like an old-time singer, that there’s a timeless quality to the way I sing. I love that so much.”

Critics and fans alike have fallen hard for Liz’s vocal stylings; she sings with a luster reminiscent of a smoky, world-wizened chanteuse. Musically, A Bright Cold Day is an exotic ride through a vast soundscape created by Stoupe. Jedi fans will easily recognize Stoupe’s impressionistic hands over the course of the album. His signature ambient orchestration is evident throughout. His tracks are laced with Latin flavors while longtime Jedi Mind Tricks collaborator and producer Scott Stallone’s expert craftsmanship imports an assortment of live instrumentation. The record maneuvers easily throughout blended shades of mood; varying hues of stark intimacy meld seamlessly with lush, regal swells of stringed grandeur. The beats are dominant; at times muffled and subtle while Stallone layers enticing bits of flute, accordion and Hammond organ throughout.

Currently Dutch are playing out a lot and employing a backing band comprised of Zach Gillespie on bass, Jono Ori playing live drums and Stoupe on the boards for everything else. A follow-up to A Bright Cold Day has been in the works for a while now.“I actually started on the second record almost two years ago,” says Stoupe. “Making this kind of music is very labor-intensive and it takes so long to put it together. I am trying to work with more original music and less sampling this time around.”

Liz agrees.

“I think with these newer songs things are coming together more organically. The songs off A Bright Cold Day are kind of rigid in that when we play them live we kind of have to stick to the way they were recorded. For the new stuff we’ll have more musicians and when we play it live we have the ability to play around with octaves and arrangements and things like that.”

If A Bright Cold Day is an apt introduction to what Liz and Stoupe are capable of, what soon will follow looks to be an even more creative output from two extremely talented artists.

For more information on Dutch check out the Enemy Soil Website: http://www.enemysoil.com/home