The Wall Street Journal-20080112-WEEKEND JOURNAL- Picks -- Laura Marling- Music- A 17-year-old British performer makes her U-S- debut with a new collection
Return to: The_Wall_Street_Journal-20080112
WEEKEND JOURNAL; Picks -- Laura Marling: Music; A 17-year-old British performer makes her U.S. debut with a new collection
One of Britain's most popular exports in recent years has been gifted female singers, from Starbucks-promoted Corinne Bailey Rae to troubled soul siren Amy Winehouse. Now add to that list Laura Marling. Just shy of 18 years old, she honed her skills at all-ages gigs in London and has drawn acclaim for a pensive acoustic sound that she jump starts with confident vocals and surprising wordplay.
In a style that's been compared to Joni Mitchell, Ms. Marling loads her lyrics to capacity, threading lines together like an urgent diarist. She sings about heartbreak as if relishing a new experience. "Maybe I should give up, give in. Give up trying to be thin. Give up and turn into my mother, God knows I love her," she sings on "New Romantic."
"I never go out to write love songs," Ms. Marling said in an interview, but "at the moment, that's what I know."
Though her career is still nascent in her home country -- her first full-length album won't come out there until next month -- Ms. Marling is already testing the waters in the U.S. A four-song collection, "My Manic & I," was just released digitally and, on her first trip out of Europe, she'll perform a handful of concerts in New York next week.
