///The Scene

Amy LaVere: Stranger Me

Singer Songwriter Amy LaVere is coming to Knoxville's Relix Variety Theatre on July 22nd to promote her soon-to-be-released (July 19) 3rd album, Stranger Me.

The album starts off with zinger "Damn Love Song": a beginning that quickly got me up from my couch to grab the volume knob and crank up the stereo loud enough to more than fill my little house for the remainder of the first listen.  "Right now - I'll do it right now.  Here's your damn love song..." one of the most promising starts I've heard to an album in quite a while.

About half way through the album, I found myself wishing I could give my readers some claim that we, the Knoxville music scene, have on LaVere as somehow one of our own.  But like LaVere's upbringing moving around the country as her dad opened new factories for GM, her music defies genre branding or a sound that's distinctly local to any place.

By the next song, Tricky Heart, I caught myself thinking of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.  When taking in the wide-open, reverb-filled instrumentation, including unusual choices such as toy pianos, Buddha boxes and a Theremin, and the quirky-but-accessible songwriting, it's easy to imagine hearing one of Stranger Me's tracks on Wilco's instantly-classic indie rock masterpiece.  

Like Foxtrot, Stranger Me isn't just quirky and accessible; it's a rollercoaster of rock defiance and emotional vulnerability.  

LaVere's voice on Stranger Me is clear and strong, with a slightly breathy delivery that's reminiscent of Nora Jones in a certain jazzy phrasing and sweet sultriness that's certain to capture listeners' attention.

The album is finished, and I've sat still long enough to write this review.  I truly enjoyed this album, and look forward to LaVere's show at Relix on July 22nd, but now it's time to play it again...maybe a little louder.