HARK!
I hear a genius …
Perhaps it’s a bit early to drop the g-word on E Alo.
Then again, I pine for what every journalist secretly salivates over: the discovery.
You know what I’m talking about: “Today, I went to my daughter’s 5th-grade production of ‘Hamlet.’ As Ophelia, my daughter tried her best to keep up with the rampaging hunk of raw talent who played the Dane; never before have I seen such daring, unbridled, stick-the-landing risk-taking by a Hollywood or Broadway veteran, let alone an 11 year old. Remember the name of this pre-shaver destined to rewrite the rules of acting: Marlon something-or-other. (My daughter threw up on the program, so I didn’t catch his last name.)”
Or, speaking of vomit, music journalists boasting about catching the likes of Death Cab for Cutie and Fleet Foxes “when they were still teens, and had to wait outside the Crocodile until they played -- because they were too young to hang out at the bar.”
Yeah, that was me … But, by the time I started covering Ben’s band and Robin’s rockers, they already had “a local buzz.” Back in the late 90’s/early 2000’s in Seattle, it seemed like half the city was out at clubs, digging around for new talent.
Similarly, though the in crowd had already tuned into another brilliant talent, I remember listening to her at a decent-sized restaurant and bar atop Queen Anne. As I wrote in a before-she-got-big 2005 article -- years before they started throwing Grammy's at her -- for the Seattle Times:
“Brandi Carlile has always been a hard-working, blue-collar style artist, something of Maple Valley’s Bruce Springsteen (if, you know, Bruce were a lot nicer looking and sang better). For the past few years, she put in her dues at Queen Anne’s Paragon every Sunday night, cranking out three-hour concerts from a tiny stage. The Paragon has a bit of a reputation as a pick-up spot, and indeed this powerhouse pop singer picked up an unusually devoted following there.”
OK, so E Alo's blissed-max instrumentals sound nothing like the born-to-sing Brandi , who started hitting Tanya Tucker notes as a girl and never looked back.
While I’m not going to go out-of-genre and call her “the next Brandi,” I do see some similarities with Erica “E Alo” Lynne.
Like Carlile, E Alo sharpens her skills with a weekly gig: She sets the groove-vibe Wednesday nights at Lacuna Kava Bar https://www.facebook.com/lacunakavabar
One of the first things I heard by E Alo on her Fb page is a 51-minute electro jam that I guess is a “song,” but really is a little more like a mini-album.
Mini-Album Leaf, maybe; she digs up so many swirling emotions with her keyboard and digital add-ons, I compared her to that somewhat obscure San Diego band I discovered in my Seattle years, when Sub Pop sent me a CD -- which I subsequently listened to approximately 1,237 times. (The Album Leaf just celebrated the 20th anniversary of their first record https://www.facebook.com/TheAlbumLeaf
E Alo is a mystical, almost-magical dial spinner; maybe a future Burning Man headliner.
I discovered her on Facebook last month, just in time for the buildup and launch of an unusual, fascinating project, an EP called “Mom,” dedicated to her late mother:
“i'm honored to be able to take you a bit beyond the music, on a more personal journey. these songs are dedicated to my late mother, Terry Lynne. they mean so much to me and i have more than just sounds to share with you.”
E Alo promoted the release with promotions leading up to a week-long release for subscribers:
here is what you can expect during the release:
each day will receive an email from me containing...
- a private soundcloud link to stream that day's song
- a private youtube link for that day's performance video
- a recipe from my mom's cookbook
- photo from performance video
- heartfelt share/memory of mom
- link to a google drive folder containing wav & mp3 versions of that day's song, the performance video for that song & that day's recipe
“i am so grateful & excited to share this stuff with you guys. thank you infinitely for being here & i hope you enjoy!”
We will -- oh yes, E Alo, HARK Valley will!
