Most musicians can’t wait to get their songs into the studio. Jesse Autumn tries to avoid it altogether.
In 2010, she released the Live EP, which featured live recordings of new material—including impassioned piano ballads like the Tori Amos-like “Welcome” and swelling pieces of piano pop, like “The Time-Jumper”—and her new album will also feature live takes rather than studio recordings.
Having done studio albums in the past for her more harp-centered efforts, Autumn simply finds the live experience to be a better fit for creating and releasing her new material.
“The energy I get from playing live is different,” she says. “I find it really exhilarating and challenging to do the recordings live. It makes the new stuff feel fresh, and I don’t want to have to wait to get it out until we find the right place to record.”
In general, Autumn seems to enjoy defying expectations. After all, why follow convention when you can gleefully thumb your nose at it?
“I’m not a classical musician,” Autumn says. “A lot of people think I’m classical because I play the harp and piano, but I have more of a folk and pop background. My singer-songwriter stuff [is more like] chamber pop because they’re songs you would think of as singer-songwriter/pop kind of ballads, but the instruments we use are usually the cello, harp, piano, and/or violins.”
Autumn will also be sharing the stage with local band Spurs, as well as Audiafauna’s Kelly Koval.
INFO: Jesse Autumn will perform at 7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 10. Don Quixote’s, 6275 Highway 9, Felton. $10. 603-2294.
