When Lissie was working to advance her career a few years ago, she may have had some lean times but she was always certain where she was headed. Born and raised in the Midwest, Lissie, who doesn’t use her surname, Maurus, professionally, moved to Los Angeles and became a regular on the club circuit, landing an opening slot on a Lenny Kravitz national tour. Tours, performances at major festivals including Lilith Fest, and two well-received recordings have proven her right as she’s poised to grab that musical brass ring.
Lissie
| If you go |
| When: 8 p.m. doors, Sunday |
| Where: 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW |
| Details: $15; 9:30.com; 800-955-5566 |
“I don’t want to be famous, so to speak,” said Lissie in 2009. “I want to win a Grammy and I want to be on ‘Saturday Night Live’ and Conan O’Brien. I’m going for it.”
And she’s almost reached it, if critical acclaim in Rolling Stone, the Los Angeles Times and other publications is any indication. Currently touring behind her debut “Catching a Tiger,” Lissie continues to enchant her audiences.
“It is interesting because when you write a song, you know what it means for the moment,” Lissie said recently of how her songs have evolved since she first wrote them. “As you tour with them, they can take on different meanings. ”
Although Lissie’s music seems to have shifted from something akin to folk rock or alt country into more indie rock, it is still flavored with the sounds of her earliest musical icons, including the legendary country performer Bobbie Gentry and the Dixie Chicks.
Not that she doesn’t love to mix it up.
At a recent Los Angeles show, reviewers commented favorably on the theme from the television show “Twin Peaks” playing as Lissie and her band took the stage. Ironically, the show’s co-creator David Lynch was in the audience and met Lissie backstage.
“I really don’t know how he heard about me,” said Lissie. “He was so nice and cool. Meeting someone like that, you think he’ll be very reserved. He was loose and casual and friendly.”
Lissie’s own casual friendliness was on full display as she engaged the crowd this past summer when performing as part of Lilith Fest at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Her high-energy performance got the crowd dancing, even in the ultra-humid summer air.
“I guess the comfort level is second nature,” Lissie said of her stage performance. “I go into this trance and play and feel it and where it is going without having to talk about it too much.”
