You do not want Leona Naess as your hotel neighbor

Sometime this year, I hope to see Leona Naess‘s fourth studio album Thirteens released. She’s been talking about it for about a year through her MySpace blogs and website, but still no specific release date. She has such an appealingly open and unique voice — one of my favorite female artists to sing along with. In my pipe dreams, this is roughly the type of music I would envision myself making if I ever learned to play the guitar.

For some reason, it always sticks in my head how she categorizes her music on MySpace. I appreciate the honesty — this is essentially what everyone thinks, isn’t it?

Here are a couple of unreleased songs which have popped up in recent months from her; I have no idea specifically what will be on Thirteens, but these contenders are my favorites out of the batch I’ve heard.

This Is Not Love – Leona Naess
I’d heard this streaming before on her website and really liked it — must have left it on repeat for about 20 rotations. I could have sworn that I posted it before but Google tells me no. Fantastic moody song.

On My Mind – Leona Naess
The lyrics to this song are just so charming and descriptive, in a slightly innocent way but not cheesy or infantile. “Honey, you’ve been on my mind like Christmas and birthdays when I was five . . . Honey you’ve been in my head like homework on Sundays when I’ve been laughing instead.” The brass and bells faintly echo a little bit of that Christmas anticipation as a kid that she sings of, without being a “seasonal” song.

I Wait For My Prince – Leona Naess
I love the old-time songbird vibe here, like Leona is a starlet in a smoky piano nightclub. Very evocative, it sounds like it is coming to me from a long way away.

I also enjoyed this recent blog post written by Leona, and could empathize. I vent through blogging too when I am disturbed by loud neighbors in hotels:

Thursday, January 18, 2007
Subject: getting arrested in Ireland

so the tour has started with ray [lamontagne], and so far so good. just played cork and the audience was so quiet i almost cried. thank fucking god. my music seems to get quieter and quieter, and i just can’t handle any noise when i play anymore. Dublin was good, but not like tonight in cork.

what i can tell you, is that i caught a cold on my way to Ireland, and after the show last night i had to escape to bed, missing most of Ray’s set. I jumped into bed to try to kick the sick i had in my body and head. at midnight a party started next door. students having a laugh i guess after exams. i was that grumpy sick person calling up the front desk about the terrible noise.

after 2 hours of this insane racket , i told the front desk that i was going to call the police. i guess they did in the end, cause little did i know that my only band mate, Scott, had joined the party next door, and when the police arrived he got arrested with the rest of the collage gang.

basically, to cut a long story short, i got my drummer arrested.

oh well, its early days, what will happen next. right before we got on stage tonight the nice woman that works in the opera house in cork said that the audience never come in for the opener, and that it was really frustrating. well i almost wanted to shoot myself then and there. why bother right? after Scott being arrested wearing his hangover like a cross, and me not getting any sleep, still sick and about to walk on the a stage with an audience of 5. well she was wrong, thank god. it was great and it was my favorite show so far. lets see what tomorrow brings.x

One track that hasn’t surfaced yet that I am anxious to hear is her reported collaboration with Ryan Adams on the track “Leave Your Boyfriend.” Let me add my voice to the chorus hoping for a concrete release date in 2007 from the lovely Ms. Naess.