Voices on the Verge was a folk

Folk music

Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....

, country

Country music

Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

, and rock

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 band formed as a collaboration between four young, formerly-independent, female musician

Musician

A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....

s: Jess Klein

Jess Klein

Jess Klein is an American singer/songwriter. A native of Rochester, NY, Klein picked up the acoustic guitar and started writing songs while living in Kingston, Jamaica in her late teens. On a whim, she auditioned for a guest slot at a local weekly dub poetry and music session...

, Erin McKeown

Erin McKeown

Erin McKeown is an American multi-instrumentalist and folk-rock singer/songwriter.McKeown began her career in the folk scene. She released her first album, Monday Morning Cold, on her own label , travelling throughout New England while still a student at Brown University in order to promote the...

, Rose Polenzani

Rose Polenzani

Rose Polenzani is an independent folk musician. She was raised in the Chicago area and attended Knox College before leaving to pursue a singing career. She is currently living in Boston, Massachusetts. Her singing style is distinctive and emotionally charged. At least one free download is always...

, and Beth Amsel

Beth Amsel

Beth Amsel is an American folk singer/songwriter. She grew up in Long Island and moved to Colorado at the age of thirteen. In 1997, she moved to the East Coast and joined the New England folk scene. She has performed with The Weepies, Jess Klein, Erin McKeown and Rose Polenzani as Voices on the...

.

The group formed in 1998 as a way to show the merits of each artist. They mostly played songs that one of the artists had previously written and recorded separately. The four artists were able to add harmonies and dynamics not present on individual recordings of their songs.

Their music was often compared to Ani DiFranco

Ani DiFranco

Ani DiFranco is an American Grammy Award-winning singer, guitarist, poet, and songwriter. She has released more than 20 albums, and is widely considered a feminist icon.-Biography:...

 or Dar Williams

Dar Williams

Dar Williams is an American singer-songwriter specializing in pop folk.She is a frequent performer at folk festivals and has toured with such artists as Mary Chapin Carpenter, Patty Griffin, Ani DiFranco, The Nields, Shawn Colvin, Girlyman, Joan Baez, and Catie Curtis.-Biography:Williams was born...

. The group no longer plays together as a group, but , all four artists are still recording and performing separately. Their only CD, Live in Philadelphia, was released on October 2, 2001 on the Rykodisc

Rykodisc

Rykodisc Records is an American record label. It is owned by Warner Music Group, operates as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and is distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance.-Company history:...

label.