Alice Austin: Blurt’s Best Kept Secret

Latest pick of cool emerging artist in our ongoing collaboration with Sonicbids.

By Fred Mills

The BLURT staff put our heads (and ears) together and we have the latest (June 2010) pick for our Blurt/Sonicbids "Best Kept Secret": it's Boston's Alice Austin.

She describes herself as "indie-rock with spurs," and that's an apt phrase - in her compelling vocals we hear a little bit of Neko Case, a little bit of Jenny Lewis, hints of P.J. Harvey and Holly Golightly, all wrapped up in a steamy-yet-twangy package of garage, pop and roots. Meanwhile, Austin also plays some stomping electric and slide guitar while incorporating stylophone and lo-fi drum loops (her friend Sean Toohey sits in on lap steel and additional guitars), so random comparisons to White Stripes, Black Keys and the Pack A.D. are not totally offbase, either.

Last year she released her fourth album (and first that was completely performed, produced and recorded by Austin), To A Star In The Yard. Prior to doing the solo thing she played with Boston outfits The Stark Raving Mad and the Lavas, and before that she was based in Burlington, VT, where she played with Queen Tangerine and Zola Turn. Along the way she experienced firsthand the vicissitudes of the music industry, which included a frustrating experience with now-shuttered L.A. label Brick Red Records (a subsidiary of the notorious Gold Circle Entertainment).

We'll have an interview with the songwriter posted to the site shortly in which we fill you in on all this and more. Check out her MySpace page and official website for song samples, tour dates and more. And congratulations to Ms. Austin. She's one of the good ‘uns, trust us.

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Bands, go to www.sonicbids.com/blurtonline to submit and have us review your materials for feature consideration.

>Our November ‘08 Best Kept Secret: The Handcuffs, from Chicago.

>Our December Best Kept Secret: Black Swan Green, from Brooklyn

>Our January Best Kept Secret: stephaniesI­d, from Asheville

>Our March Best Kept Secret: Polly Mackey & the Pleasure Principle, from England

>Our June Best Kept Secret: Wiretree, from Austin

>Our August Best Kept Secret: Bulletproof Vests, from Memphis

>Our November Best Kept Secret: The Vivs, from Boston

>Our January Best Kept Secret: The Public Good, from D.C.

>Our February Best Kept Secret: Dirty Dancing, from Austin

>Our April Best Kept Secret: Jenny Dee & the Deelinquents

>Our June Best Kept Secret: The Rebel Set