Lissie — Why You Runnin'

Unless you're the sort of person who gets off on tears and public breakdowns, Cat Power has officially become redundant. Lissie Maurus has come to fill that spot in the folk-blues-country-soul crooner category.

This five-song EP from the Hollywood-via-Rock Island, Ill. singer is a trip in the wayback machine to a time filled with on-the-porch country covers and singalongs around the family piano. The undoubted highlight is "Oh Mississippi," a traditional-sounding ode to the river that cuts through the heart of America. Maurus' vocal performance on that track would be nearly Neko-ian if not for the healthy dose of Hope Sandoval that also comes out of her.

Equally magical is a burning rendition of Hank Williams' "Wedding Bells," while closing track "Here Before" hints at the mystical energy Bat For Lashes draws upon. Taken together these make for a tantalizing introduction.

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