Lavender Diamond

The new 4-track E.P., The Cavalry of Light, by Lavender Diamond showcases the sweet soprano of Becky Stark who sings a delicate 1960s-inspired folk. The standout track is "You Broke My Heart", the liveliest of the bunch, which is set to a simple driving rhythm and slowly builds intensity. "Rise In The Springtime" sounds like Nico as if produced by Badly Drawn Boy, it's simple arrangement of piano/guitar/violin getting more dramatic towards the end. A Stark solo, "Why Oh Why", which somewhat reworks "You Broke My Heart" on just guitar and voice, is also available for download.

Thanks to Two and 1/2 Pounds of Bacon for the tip.

Camille

With percolating rhythms and tight harmonies, French singer Camille submits further evidence that pop music doesn't have to be cheesy or lacking in intimacy. The key, I think, is that on her new album Le Fil, Camille layers much of the album with a variety of sounds made by her own voice instead of the same synth and guitar sounds that we hear all the time, yet retains the catchy exuberance of the best pop music. My French is pretty bad these days, but I think I'd follow her unique siren's call anywhere. Fans of the quirky vocal qualities of Regina Spektor and the feisty pop of Nelly Furtado should definitely have a listen. You may already know about her as one of the singers on the punk covers project Nouvelle Vague where she does sultry versions of "The Guns of Brixton", "Making Plans for Nigel" and "Too Drunk To Fuck". Check out what she does on her own with the strange and fun new video for the first single " Ta Douler" (.rm). A video of a song from her previous album, "Paris" (.mpg), is available online as well.

Special thanks to videos.antville.org for turning me on to her.