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SOUTHERN CHANTEUSE AMY LAVERE RELEASES DEBUT ALBUM
from The Bulletin: January 17, 2006
by Mark Williams
After a foray into punk rock and emo in her teen years, LaVere moved to Nashville and got an office job on Music Row -- where she met rockabilly rebel Gabe Kudela, whom she wed after only three weeks; she learned how to slap a stand-up bass -- her instrument of choice these days -- and got back in touch with her deep south musical roots. Soon, the newlyweds moved to Memphis, rocking the blues on Beale Street.
Four years later, the couple split -- leaving LaVere to find solace in classic country and to form a roadhouse band with former Todd Snider drummer Paul Buchignani and guitar man Jason Freeman, playing 150 shows in 2004. The band’s growing rep not only led LaVere to Archer Records but also back to Nashville, where she was cast as rockabilly queen Wanda Jackson in the recent Johnny Cash biopic “Walk The Line.” Adding to her acting resume, LaVere also has a role in the forthcoming “Black Snake Moan.” starring Samuel L. Jackson, Christina Ricci and popster Justin Timberlake.
With help from southern heavyweights like Memphis piano man Jim Dickinson and former Squirrel Nut Zippers leader Jimbo Mathus (who contributes a good ol’ country blues number, “Nightingale,“ to the proceedings), LaVere spent part of last year recording her debut album in Memphis -- including tracks recorded at the famed Phillips Recording Service, home of the legendary Sun Records label, which introduced the world to Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and late Texas rock & roll hipster Roy Orbison.
"This World Is Not My Home" benefits from that vibe, as Amy LaVere's charmingly girlish voice serves her backwoods balladry, a celebration of the South and its diverse musical styles -- with songs that mix it up: from dusty roadhouse honky-tonk to front porch jazz to countrified torch songs; and while LaVere and her two-man band benefit from the presence of players like Mathus and Dickinson, the trio seems at its best on tunes that showcase their own unique talents, as on “Never Been Sadder,” “Last Night” and the beautifully sparse “We Went Sailing.”
“This World Is Not My Home” is an uplifting charmer of an indie album -- a captivatingly class act and could be a favorite of ’06 for fans of good old-fashioned pickin’ and playin’ and decidedly lovely lyrics; it’ll also definitely be a keeper for fans of the “Sounds of Texas” concert series and listeners of KPFT. If you have no time to rummage through a music store in the coming weeks, check out www.archer-records.com for song samples and to order your autographed copy -- you’ll be glad you did...
