Melissa Vaughan

She writes most of her songs while sipping very mild green tea, and it shows. Melissa Vaughan's music leans towards the shadowy theme of departures and a wistful reluctance to change. While her piano melodies are mostly simple and straightforward, her lyrics cause the listener to transport themselves away from routine; into her world of misty and sometimes dim corners. Themes that suggest grief and subsequent elation make listening a pleasant emotional roller coaster that fans describe as "something you have to hear twice to fully appreciate and understand".

Like an intricate poem or a raw and delicate painting, people who acquire a taste for her style of musical composition never tire of it. From the gently persuasive 'Queen of Sky Park' (a nod to her farewell to childhood) to the rising swell of 'Only the Angels', she has created for us an atmosphere that both alters and gratifies our ideas of beautiful melodies. An artist in every sense of the word, her completely original debut CD is one worth having and worth listening to time and time again. Green tea recommended, of course.