Captivated

Listening to: Jesca Hoop (Kismet)I have been saved -- hallelujah! -- from aural boredom. I first heard Jesca Hoop while streaming KCRW (excellent radio station out of LA that plays the OTHER 99% of music being created in the world) sometime this past summer. Something about her voice with its origami way of twisting and folding, and the colorful layering of melodies... it bewitched me. It was before her album was out, so I had several months to cool my heels. I just today remembered about her again and sure enough, there on iTunes, an album. I absolutely ADORE it. Poetic, weird lyrics and equally poetic, weird music. She's like the love child of Tom Waits (who described her music as 'a four-sided coin') and an edgier incarnation of Feist. She was actually the nanny for Tom Waits' kids, so that makes some sense. Her demo tape got in the hands of Nic Harcourt of Morning Becomes Eclectic fame and he gave her some serious exposure and playtime on his show. I of course missed her tour through NYC, but if anyone reading this lives in CA, she's got some shows there through April 2008.