So every time I decide to drive back to Austin, I automatically spend the whole day prior making brand new playlists for the drive down. Entitled “ON THE ROAD” (because half the fun in making it is naming it), the current playlist I am working on for tomorrow’s monotonous 3 hour drive is looking pretty spectacular, and I have THIS GIRL to thank for kicking it off. I stumbled upon Lissie’s music through my daily blog browsings, and can not even begin to tell you how thrilled I was to find out she will be playing SXSW.
Growing up in the industrial blue collar town of Rock Island, Illinois and now residing (with dog) on a farmhouse in Ojai, California, Lissie is a girl who radiates a rustic spirit and a light-hearted personality that will inadvertently make the masses swoon as soon as they first hear the deep Midwestern spirit in her out-country songs. As a musician, this chick successfully channels the gritty down-to-earth vibe of her small-town roots and landscape with a powerfully raw yet refined voice that sends chills down your back (guaranteed). She is the epitome of the strength in Americana music— in the sense that listening to her makes you either want to drop everything, jump in a car, and take off on a road trip to God knows where (with her music as the pioneering soundtrack to your life) or sit solo on the front porch, watch the rain, and introspectively relate every aspect of your personal life with her (mostly depressing yet) extremely honest lyrics. Everything about her emits a pure, simple, and highly enviable naturalism.
With her first EP produced by Band of Horses bassist (and friend) Bill Reynolds, an album in the works, and just finished nailing opening spots on tours for Lenny Kravitz and Ray Lamontagne, Lissie (although no stranger to the music scene) is quickly forcing her way into wide recognition. As she comes down to us in March, be prepared for a strong and deeply moving live performance and 1,000s of people lauding her impeccable and inspiring talent (me included).
P.S. Make sure you listen to her EP in its entirety, Why You Runnin’. Absolutely incredible.
Songs To Listen To:
Lissie—Wedding Bells (Hank Williams cover)
Interesting Facts:
- If she could sing with anyone in the world, it would be PHISH, and she would sing “If I Could I Would.”
- Her influences: pie, cigarettes, porches, corn hole, and waiting in line (all of which makes us instant best friends).
- Her worst show was at a Pizza Hut.
