When Laura Vecchione begins to sing, the first thing you notice is the quieting of room-chatter as people turn to listen. Her voice is unearthly beautiful, yet deep, rich, and full of emotion, evoking wide rivers of the South that seem far from her origins in New York and Boston. Hers is a soulful and sophisticated sound that defies genre – a convergence of gospel, blues, country, and rock. And when she sings heartbreak, she sings for the heartbreak of humanity with a sincerity that offers a message of hope, and a celebration of resilience.
As both a songwriter and an artist, Laura has the ability to embody what might seem like opposing forces in a lesser talent. She references Homeric themes in her self-penned, “Penelope,†as easily as she shouts “edumacation!†quoting Dr. John’s down-home wisdom that we are “Qualified,†by simply being who we are. In her writing, she weaves her politics, pain and prayers into a soulful tapestry.
While all these are signs of her enormous and refined talent, Laura’s most generous gift to her audience is her onstage magnetism. She is a singer who looks you in the eye with compassion and playfulness. You are torn between sitting still to hear every nuance of her extraordinary voice, and moving irresistibly to her delicious rhythms and infectious melodies.
Laura’s debut CD, Deeper Waters is a confluence of roots traditions. Recorded in Nashville, Deeper Waters features performances by some of Music City’s most experienced session players who have played with Lyle Lovett, Patty Griffin, Anders Osborne, Reba McEntire, and the Subdudes. Boston’s rising star, Tim Blane is featured on background vocals, and select tracks were mixed by Grammy-Award-winning engineer, Jim Scott (Tom Petty, Lucinda Williams, Wilco, and The Dixie Chicks).
In its first week out, Deeper Waters ranked as Top 5 Most Added on the AMA Chart and continued to climb – an impressive accomplishment for an independent, self-funded release. It reached 14 on the well-respected Roots Music Report. XM Satellite Radio was on board early, adding three tracks to its Americana programming loop and featuring the cover of Deeper Waters on its “What’s New On XM†page next to new releases by Keith Urban, Gnarles Barkley, and Lindsey Buckingham.
Meanwhile, the hometown story grew. Laura had already won Boston’s Colgate Country Showdown before the release of Deeper Waters, and with it, the praises of country station WKLB. George Knight of WBOS, Boston’s commercial triple A station, began spinning her single “Jane,†which WBOS added to its “Boston Music Sundays†programming. Martha’sVineyard’s WMVY added "Fool's Gold" to its Fresh Produce sampler alongside artists like Melissa Ferrick and Mary Chapin Carpenter. And the Boston Globe proudly claimed, “Vecchione is all ours.â€
Born in New York City, Laura’s classical vocal training began at age 15. As an American Studies major at Barnard College, Laura found herself in the warm embrace of the Barnard/Columbia Gospel Choir while also studying Jazz Voice at Manhattan School of Music. Laura moved to Boston to attend Berklee College of Music. She later studied guitar with local maestro John Curtis (Patty Griffin Band, Jon Pousset-Dart Band) and began writing and performing original material.
Laura continues to tour in support of Deeper Waters while working on her sophomore album. To read press clips and reviews, or for more information visit www.lauravecchione.com or contact
[email protected].
