MUSIC CITY ROOTS PRE-SHOW RAVE WRITE-UP ABOUT AMELIA WHITE AND BAND

From the “long overdue” file we’ll hear from East Nashville “writer, song-singer” Amelia White, whom I discovered during my days of official discovery duty at The Tennessean. Along about 2002 came a disc called Blue Souvenirs that featured a mix of keening country pathos, urban savvy and resonant songwriting. The composition, texture and singing made me think of Lucinda Williams with better diction and range. Amelia was new to Nashville then (following development years in Boston), and I’d soon meet her in the swirl of the neighborhood and music scene. She proved to be a super-cool, positive person and a tuned-in artist who had a lot more in her than just one debut album. Her 2006 project Black Doves won her tons of acclaim and new opportunities. Her most recent project is the impressive and personal Old Postcard. A recent No Depression writeup said that “she puts her heart out for all to experience and loves to connect with her audiences.”

I asked her what’s up these days, and she wrote back that the major themes of now include a new publishing deal that focuses on her TV show placements (her songs have been on Justified and other shows), plus some songs of hers being recorded by others like Anne McCue and Wild Ponies. And she’s readying a new studio album called Home Sweet Hotel for a winter release. “It is dark, moody and rocking, and explores the tug between life on the road, and life at home,” she said. “I look forward to touring the USA and overseas behind it- and know it’s going to open some doors, and keep me chasing the crazy muse that drives me.”