Wow. From the first glace of this gorgeous Ohio newcomer’s debut fulllength, a serous music fan might want to dismiss 20-year-old Kate Voegele without even listening to the disc: Hmm, she’s hot - probably another Britney clone, which means shitty music. MySpace? Where are the mirror photos? Sounds like the kind of label you get signed to by sending in cereal box tops.

Well, not one of those fears is even close to being true. The still-in-college Voegele is a true, real rocker - there are photos of her holding a Fender Telecsaster, amazingly - with a learned pop sensibility and a much harder edge than one might expect. There’s even aB3 organ on this record! Think Sheryl Crow, but with much more grit and fire.

The folks at MySpace Records surrounded Voegele with several session stars, including producer Marshall Altman, drummer Aaron Sterling, and guitarist Dino Meneghin (who both worked with Liz Phair). Thankfully, this is one of the few albums that wasn’t ruined by pop music’s knob-twisting sonic sadist - engineer Niko Bolas, who in the past has butchered otherwise fine work by Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young and John Hiatt. Despite Bolas’ presence, Voegele manages to end up with an album that’s a surprisingly personal statement. Call her the anti-Joss Stone.

Ms. Voegele is a feast for the eyes, but not for a moment does she ever become a pop tart. “Top Of The World” is the most somber thwarted love song ever to receive such a title. “Chicago” is a rocking, haunting album opener that grabs with a sterling hook and is both sexy and serious. The set closer, “Kindly Unspoken,” is the only misfire here; the old “piano and vocal only trick” has only been used 500 times so far this year by the Nickelbacks and Trains of the world, who obviously don’t realize the device was once used by Perry Como. However, contrast the strident final song with such worthy cuts as “It’s Only Life” and “One Way Or Another” (thankfully not the Blondie chestnut) and the entire package heads for the finish line and scores the upset victory of the year.

Kate Voegele is already a finer artist than Avril Lavigne, Stone, and Tori Amos rolled into one. Given the state of American pop music, here’s hoping this stunning and talented real musician gets a fighting chance. Don’t Look Away? Don’t even try to.

Source: goodtimesmag.com