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Music Out Now

Brandi Carlile - The Story

On her new album, 'The Story', Brandi Carlile opens up her heart, soul, and psyche in a series of memorable songs that invite you into her world. To her growing community of fans, it's Brandi's revelatory imagery, stark emotive vocals, and finely-detailed songs which provide the keys to who she is, where she's been, and where's she's going.

Shortly after the release of her critically-acclaimed self-titled debut - and Rolling Stone named her one of the  '10 Artists To Watch in 2005'- Brandi left her home in Seattle and set out with twin brothers Tim (guitar) and Phil (bass) Hanseroth, with whom she'd worked on her earliest recordings and independent regional tours. The tightly knit trio, which forms the core of her band today, spent the better part of two years on the road.

By the end of 2006, Brandi had embarked on several headlining tours and supported a variety of artists including Ray LaMontagne, The Fray, Chris Isaak, Tori Amos, and Shawn Colvin. The sound and songs of 'The Story' first formed during the rigors of touring as Brandi began working the new songs into the band's repertoire, road-testing and refining the material under the spotlights, giving each performance its own character.

The intensity and authenticity of her music brought her to the attention of the Grammy Award-winning producer T Bone Burnett (Counting Crows, Roy Orbison) who came on-board to produce 'The Story'.

By the time she went into a Vancouver studio with T Bone, Brandi's new songs had become second nature. "We've been playing some of these songs for years - I wrote 'Turpentine' when I was a teenager," Brandi says. "T Bone helped us hear these songs through fresh ears and gave the whole album a great energy."

'The Story' builds on the plaintive aching melodies, moody atmosphere, and heartfelt lyrics characterising Brandi's first album with nuanced arrangements including electric guitar ('My Song', 'Losing Heart'), piano ('Wasted'), and cello ('Turpentine', 'Late Morning Lullaby').

Driven by Brandi's dynamic vocals, the album's 13 tracks pulse with a raw and road-worthy intensity that is much closer to her live concert sound than her self-titled debut album.

The intensity of the title track comes from one of those 'beautiful mistakes' that sometimes underlie hidden, subconscious intentions.

"The song peaks in a way that takes everything in my voice to hit it," Brandi admits. "When I went for that note, my voice cracked and I almost stopped, but I'm glad I kept going because it turned out to be such a pure moment - technically wrong, but emotionally right."

One of the album's highlights, according to Brandi, is 'Cannonball', a song she recorded with Amy Ray and Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls.

With 'The Story', Brandi Carlile takes you into the deepest most poetic moments of her own experiences, creating the kind of artist-audience bond that makes you feel you're living inside those moments yourself. The album’s title track 'The Story' is currently being exposed to South African music fans through its use in the 'Tracker' TV ad.