Leah Andreone
Veiled
RCA
by Mike Olley, special to Imprint

They say you can't judge a book by its cover, but sometimes it can be a good indication. When I first saw this album, I could already hear the emotional singing and the interesting mix of instruments and rhythm. While reminiscent of a lighter, more accessible Tori Amos, Leah adds a bit of her own style to the songs, which certainly separates the two. As a unveils herself.

On her debut album, this 23-year old singer/songwriter acquits herself well and her songs run the emotional gamut from a new love to those of an abused child. Throughout the album she exhibits her amazing voice from the haunting whisper on "You Make Me Remember" to the harsh clamors of her first single, "It's Alright It's OK," to the beautiful softness on "Imagining You," perhaps the only 'happy' song of the eleven. As she says: "The emotions that I have repressed in the past and now reveal are darker and uglier." One of the more compelling songs on the album, "Problem Child," documents a relationship she witnessed between an abused boy and his parents.

Musically, there are many interesting songs on the album, and all complement her excellent voice. Having been trained in classical piano, many songs have nice, simple melodies, while others, such as the polyrhythmic "It's Alright It's OK," are complex and diverse.

Her story of success is just as interesting as her music. After spending her youth playing piano, alone and in pick-up bands, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in music. While singing in the local clubs, she was working as a waitress in a diner. One day, some record executives were discussing new talent. Seizing the opportunity, she ran home and got back in time to give her tape to one of the men as he was leaving. The next day he returned, and a few weeks later Veiled was being recorded. The result is the eleven-song autobiography, which left Leah, by her own admission, happy and satisfied.