Tom Yorke does roots rock

Brandi Carlile Brandi Carlile

She's billed as an 'Artist to Watch' by Rolling Stone, Paste and Interview. Her album cover shows her looking both cute and unbearably serious... like she's ready to play the troubled new girl in town on The O.C. On top of all that, she was a teen playing at Lillith Fair, on the local stage when it came through here back in 1999. All this makes my subconsious sound the post-lillith-pre-packaged-teen-crap alarm. But she's local and recommended, and truly, I just can't resist.

Thank God I did, as this is truly a great find - think Thom Yorke fronting a roots-rock band, or Neko Case with a Jeff Buckley fixation, or "Fake Plastic Trees" as played by Son Volt...well, you get the picture.

Brandi Carlile, 23, grew up in the foothills of the Cascade Mountians, in Ravensdale, which is 50 miles SE of Seattle where she met her band - the twins (brothers and Seattle natives Tim and Phil Hanseroth.) I think the bros. arent' in the Rhapsody fold, as the songs they wrote exclusively don't appear in the Rhapslibrary, unfortunately. Having grown up in rural Washington State, myself, perhaps I'm biased in my judgement, but there's not much to complain about this release. It's a debut that doesn't sound like one, and I'm still amazed at how many debuts are released these days that sound like the artist has been recording albums for some time (Ray Lamontagne, Raul Midon.)

My only complaint would be about John Goodmanson's production, it's a bit tidy for my taste, but considering the wide swath that Columbia/Sony's going for here (again, the album cover,) I completely accept it at face value.

And what a face.

tag: playlist, brandi carlile