I'm coming home to you
Like a lighthouse in the dark
I reach for you whenever we're apart
~ Coming Home to You, Ellis

Minnesota-based singer-songwriter Ellis has been busy since her last visit to Fairfield, including working on a new album and showcasing at the Sundance Film Festival!  With her sweet voice, gigantic grin and heart-opening songs, I'm sure she made a whole bunch more new fans. 

New fans and longtime fans in the area can see her live at Cafe Paradiso on Saturday 2/13 at 8pm!

Tune in to Lyrical Venus on Tuesday morning to catch up with Ellis. The show starts at 9:00 am central, Ellis will call in around 9:30.

Show me to the river, somewhere to wash away this feeling,
these days of disbelieving.

~ Show Me to the River, Amie Penwell

Marin County singer-songwriter Amie Penwell just released her debut full-length album King in a Temple this past November.  The first thing that hits you on hearing the album is the voice. A voice for Gospel, or like the voice of an angel lowered an octave as it says on her website.  It's an apt description.  Amie's voice not just soulful, you really do feel like it's a healing balm to sooth away the pain of life she sings about in her songs, and turn it into something beautiful.

Join me Tuesday from 9-10 am for new songs from the new Catie Curtis and Meg Hutchinson albums, plus the interview with Amie at 9:30.

The lovely Kate Graves is busy getting her new album "Love Songs For The Neurotic" ready for release but she's taking some time out for an interview on Lyrical Venus this Tuesday. I've gotten to preview some of the songs and they are delightful little gems I've had on repeat all day! I love this quote about her voice:

"Kate's voice is the Long Island Ice Tea of voices. It's One part
Lucinda, two part Emmylou, with a twist of Norah Jones." ~Paul
Godbout, lead singer of Secret Sobriety

Come have a listen yourself and see what Paul means.

Tune in Tuesday from 9-10am for songs by female singer-songwriters, interview at 9:30.

Shannon Hurley was named one of the Top 25 Artists on MySpace by Rolling Stone Magazine.  She wasn't available for an on-air interview, but check out LyricalVenus.com for her email interview, and tune in for an extended set of her music this morning on Lyrical Venus Radio!

Miranda Mallard has a wide range of vocal talents from classical to folk to jazz and more.  Hear her sing a Mozart piece from a live recording of her Senior recital and then a jazzy latin flavored song with her band Rock Paper Scissors.

After that, I'll try to play a song from rest of the artists I interviewed in 2008 that  wasn't able to play last week.  So much good music!

Merry Christmas Eve Eve!

Seeing as it's the night before Christmas Eve I'm going with a Christmas theme for this show. I've got a bunch more for you from the lovely Hotel Cafe complilation CD Winter Songs, featuring many of the talented ladies who have graced their stage in the past year. Plus other seasonal songs from traditional (like Priscilla Ahn singing Silent Night) to quirky (Dar William's Christians and the Pagans) - all sung by some of my favorite artists that I've played on the show this year.

Tune in every Tuesday from 9-10am for great music by female singer-songwriters!

It's cold outside but there's plenty of good music on the radio to give you warm fuzzies! Tune in for a set off the Hotel Cafe Winter Songs compilation with new originals and fun new takes on classic songs by the talented ladies from The Hotel Cafe Tour.

We'll also have a sneak preview set from the brand new album by some other talented ladies - the Fairfield band Rock Paper Scissors. They are releasing the album this Friday the 19th! (click the pictures for more info about the albums)

Last week in the mail I got three, count 'em, three pre-released albums
of great music, so that means a special sneak preview of new stuff for
Lyrical Venus listeners!

Alison Harris is a newcomer to the scene, but she is already being compared to greats such as Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez. Tune in to hear a few from her debut album Smoke Rings in the Sky. Speaking of Joan Baez, I've got a few tracks off her new album Day After Tomorrow, (produced by Steve Earle) on the list. Joan Baez took Dar Williams under her wing back when Dar was just starting out, so it's appropriate that both of these ladies have albums coming out in September. Dar's new one is called Promised Land, and yes I'll play a few from that one too! Plus a few more good ones by female singer-songwriters to round out the hour. Tune in 9am Tuesday!

break me out tonight i wanna see the
sun rising anywhere but here
come with me, this could be
the only chance we get, we gotta take it
don't do it now we'll never make it
lose this crowd, break me out
~ The Rescues, Break Me Out

The Rescues have been described as an Indie Supergroup - three talented singer-songwriters and friends with solo careers, brought together to perform at another friend's wedding only to discover that the whole was more than the sum of the parts. And when you've got good parts to begin with, well - get ready to have your socks rocked! I'm betting you'll love the soaring harmonies, driving beats and heart-swelling ballads these three pump out time and again on their album Crazy Ever After as much as I do!

Join me on Tuesday at 9am for an interview with the two female thirds of The Rescues - Adrianne and Kyler. (Love you too Gabe!)

I have a universe inside me
Where I can go and spirit guides me
There I can ask oh any question
I get the answers if I listen

~ Sinéad O'Connor, The Healing Room

Last week I was off in Seattle with some of my college pals to
celebrate the graduation of our friend Katja from Naturopathic medical
school. It was a sweet time staying up late in a cabin on the lake with trips into the city for fun adventures. I manage to get together with this group of friends about once a year, and one thing I always look forward to is sharing what kind of music we've been listening to lately. We thought it would be fun for us to do a show together, so guest DJ's Megan and Karuna introduced me to some new artists and we all picked out some songs to celebrate the occasion (like The Healing Room by Sinéad O'Connor), plus some all around good stuff by Ellis, Lori McKenna, Edie Brickell, Beth Orton and more!

This week on Lyrical Venus the songs are all about rivers and rain.

Rivers, rain and flooding have been on everyone's mind here in Iowa lately. While we've been fortunate to have some nice sunny days lately, the rivers are still swollen and the crisis isn't over for some. For the people who have lost their homes and businesses, the road to recovery has only just begun. Some of the hardest hit are the artists and musicians without insurance who have lost equipment, portfolios, tools, studios, housing and more. Legion Arts and the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation has set up an artist relief fund where you can donate to those in need: