Customer Reviews

Why You Runnin' [Vinyl]

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Lissie Maurus is a folk-rock singer from the west Illinois border town of Rock Island. Although there's a rustic Midwestern edge to her Americana, her transplantation to Los Angeles, and national and international gigs have elevated her music beyond coffee-house strumming. Her voice pulls you in close with confessional introductions and then attacks with arresting outbursts of emotion. The exclamation of "danger will follow me now everywhere I go, angels will fall on me and take me to my home" finds her bending back from the microphone to make room for a lungful of emotion. The empty spaces in the studio add presence and dimension as she steps back to keep the needles from pinning red with her fervor.

There's a bluesy edge in her vocals, not unlike Joan Osborne, but with the earthier, more distracted air of Edie Brickell. The productions often arc from contemplative openings to emotional conclusions. "Little Lovin'" rolls through its first half with only a bass drum (and your toe-tapping) to keep the beat, but a deep bottom end rolls in, Lissie's vocals rise and hand-clapping rhythms spur the vocals to soar into full-throated scatting. The abandon with which she vocalizes has the improvisational verve of a live jam, blowing past the artifice of studio recording. Her cover of Hank Williams' "Wedding Bells" turns its despondency from hangdog to forlorn, and the original male-perspective lyrics ("you wanted me to see you change your name") gain additional layers when sung in a woman's voice.

An ode to Lissie's native river, "Oh Mississippi," is sung with a gospel piano and overdubbed choir, and though it may remind you of "Bridge Over Troubled Water," it turns into a fervent elegy for the failing industrial heart of America. Here too Lissie hits a second gear to bring the song to a tremendous emotional climax. Bill Reynolds' production is spare but filled with touches - a tambourine or a tom-tom riff - that provide instrumental accents that complement the vocal dynamics. He leaves Lissie up-front, where listeners can hang on to both her emphatic notes and dramatic pauses. A full LP recorded in Nashville with a pickup band and producer Jacquire King is apparently sitting in the can, but it's hard to imagine it captured Lissie in such disarmingly naked moments as this brilliant five-song EP. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]

I stumbled upon this album in the cheap MP3 downloads, and I'm so glad I did. I knew nothing of her music before, but it's a bit country, a bit alternative. I felt like I heard traces of Emmylou Harris, maybe some Neko Case, not really sure. On this album, Lissie needs no comparison, but if people are looking for some alt-countryish music by a talented artist, this is definitely an album to own. My only complaint is that it doesn't have as many songs as an album should, but I didn't mind too much because it was a discounted price anyway. A great buy.

Fantastic!!! Can't stop listening to it and i want more. She should be making more albums in no time as soon as she is done with her tour in the UK. And I for one cannot wait. It's fresh and raw!

a brilliant album!
love her voice and the style in which she lays down her notes
she touches my soul with her music

Lissie is an up and coming musician from Mid-Central U.S. (Rock Island, IL). She just appeared with her two band mates on Jimmy Fallon, Late Night. She's refreshingly down home, down to earth, and doesn't use sleezy outfits or bling to buttress her fresh, positive sound.

Her lyrics are poetic and non-contrived. I love this band and Lissie! (One day, her band may add a fiddle for a fuller sound; and a drummer to help out the bass player - who plays both instruments at once.)

I saw and heard her in concert in February in Minneapolis, and she left my son and me tingling with good feelings after the gig. On stage, she is genuine, sweet, and just someone you want to drink lemonade, tell stories, and joke with at a summer picnic in July along the Mississippi River. In sum, both Lissie's band and Lissie the person are very fine.

Wow. This gal has a voice that could coax a hibernating bear out of its cave in February. I have serious voice envy.

Bought this CD after hearing her. She has a raw, earthy sound with melancholy lyrics and powerful voice both live and on the CD. Love this CD.

I just stumbled on this artist and I have to say that I love the album. My favorite songs are Wedding Bells and Here Before. Talent, raw talent and this is what I was looking for!

Lissie is a breath of fresh air. Her voice is amazing and her music really hits the spot.

Lissie has a great voice ... and thoughtful lyrics. I hope she comes out with a full-length album soon!