Send "Lissie " Ringtones to your Cell 
| BBC |
 California native Lissie Maurus makes a man sick to his stomach. Not because she’s no good – rather the exact opposite. Catching a Tiger is a debut that dreams beyond typical new artist parameters. It is the work of a girl who looks, even with a fag hanging from her pale lips, like an alt-fashion model. But she sounds like one of the greatest female vocalists of a generation, arguably without even really trying. High praise, but hang in there: qualification’s coming. Covers have courted attention in certain quarters of the press – Lady Gaga here (watch on Youtube), Metallica there (watch on Youtube) – and a live duet with Ellie Goulding (watch on Youtube) hasn’t harmed her chances of considerable exposure around the release of this 12-track collection of country-tinged radio rock (think late-60s, early-70s Laurel Canyon vibes, with more than a pinch of Fleetwood Mac, given a contemporary kick). But beyond the gimmicks there’s a talent evident within seconds of opener Record Collector. Kitchen-cupboard percussion clatters, and then: “I’m tired of saying that I won’t get lost ever again… Who knows, maybe I will.” It’s half-spoken, half-sung; it sounds angelic like few voices have this side of the millennium bug meltdown that never was. Not wholly celestial, grounded as it is in spit and sawdust, but reaching for an emotional connect with the listener that few new artists can aim for without sounding forced, pushed to the very extremities of their abilities. ...full text |
| Musicomh |
| With her freckles and flaxen hair, Lissie Maurus conjures up images of her native Midwest, full of unruffled country charm. But in reality, the Illinois-born singer grew up listening to gangsta rap. By age nine, she was starring in the musical Annie. She then headed to LA to work on her music, which attracted some cool connections; after the EP Why You Runnin', produced by Band Of Horses bassist Bill Reynolds last year, she returns with her debut album. It's helmed by Jaquire King, best known for his work with Kings Of Leon. Lissie is living the Americana dream, a musical reverie nestled between country, folk-rock and a tinge of pop. Catching A Tiger opens with the atmospheric Record Collector, her voice captivating us over a track that exudes a mix of melancholy and joy. Assertive drum beats lead the way for When I'm Alone, channeling Stevie Nicks. In Sleep navigates between different registers and arrangements, the intensity in her voice rising and falling like that of the Fleetwood Mac legend. The piano highlights the mellow Bully, the keys echoing her voice, but it lacks the strength of its predecessors. With its banjo providing the main sound, Little Lovin' is perhaps the most country accented song on the album, but it eventually amplifies to something with even more body and mood. And mood is aplenty on Stranger, set somewhere in the late '60s/early '70s. It's Old California replete with sea breeze, desert winds and country air. Her delivery is faultless, the arrangement is immaculate, the song just plain fun. Pop-rock echoes through the equally catchy hooks of Loosen The Knot. And that is a key element in Lissie's songwriting: her ability to write memorable, radio-friendly tunes reminiscent of early Sheryl Crow. Cuckoo misleads with its opening guitar riff, but it quickly falls into radio pop/rock territory, the sort of thing that's been done and redone a thousand times over yet still finds listeners and buyers....full text |
| Spin |
| Equally comfortable with dance grooves ("When I'm Alone"), country-tinged laments ("Everywhere I Go"), and epic pop dramas ("Loosen the Knot"), Illinois-bred, California-based Elisabeth Maurus is a promising work in progress on this smoothly produced debut. But despite her confident, alluringly husky voice, the songs don't always make a lasting impression. The happy exceptions: "Stranger," a Buddy Holly–inflected rocker on which she shouts, "I'm not yours, I am mine!"; and the aching piano ballad "Oh Mississippi."...full text |
Lissie lyrics
|
| |||||||
