Alela Diane & Wild Divine

Alela Diane is a homebody by nature. The Portland, Oregon-based musician, though traveled the world over, is most at peace within audible range of a crackling fire and her cat's paws padding across the wood floors of her creaky Victorian residence. Her methods thus far have echoed this aspect of her being--from fashioning hand-sewn CD jackets for The Pirate's Gospel, to nearly spit-shining To Be Still in her dad's studio. Her new album, Alela Diane & Wild Divine, is not your typical Alela Diane record. There is no banjo plucked and drenched in ghostly reverb, no violin wielded like fine china at your chest cavity, no chiffon blowing curiously in the wind and most importantly, nothing vaguely freaky going on (beyond the inevitable waxing and waning of the moon). Rather, there comes a time when artistic pursuits warrant a new approach - one that reflects personal growth and its continued path - and therein lies the root base of the expanded sounds of Alela Diane & Wild Divine.

Much of Divine's material was gathered from 2009's constant travels: penned during long drives in the back of a tour van, and tested in windowless greenrooms overseas. Such environs prove hotbeds for creativity - though it's rare you can truly harness it in the blur of cities passed - and Alela knew the songs could not be actualized until she fully unpacked her suitcase and settled into the sturdy walls she knew best. Once the bags were emptied, they gathered dust for nearly all of 2010, marking the longest hiatus Alela had taken since she'd first embarked on the touring odyssey.

Having found herself poised at a newly-acquired piano, Alela's words were fastidiously chosen and chords repeatedly changed, and all with utmost intention. Most of the lyrics were of borne of her sole observations, but for the first time, she began co-writing with guitarist and husband Tom Bevitori. Songs like 'Long Way Down,' and 'Desire' showcase the collaborative efforts of the couple. Producer Scott Litt (REM, The Replacements, Patti Smith) caught wind of the circulating demos and found them engaging enough to cease his seven-year stint of dormancy. Litt invited the group down to his home studio in Venice, CA to share in his vision; he awakened their minds to new ideas and encouraged the musical progression that was clearly within them.