With the release of her third CD, Upstate Songs, rising-star Devon Sproule joins the growing roster of artists on City Salvage Records, the independent multi-media label out of Brooklyn, New York. Set for June 3 release, Upstate Songs features a collection of bright, sparsely arranged compositions and represents a new direction from the grittier, electric sounds that gained Sproule national notoriety with the release of her previous two albums.
Raised by Canadian folk music, "the dead, teenager pop-ballads of the 50's," and The Beatles on 465 acres of farm and forest land in rural Virginia, the twenty-one-year-old Sproule began touring nationally at the age of seventeen, sometimes performing with the accompaniment of a rock band. Although the rock-influenced sounds featured on Long Sleeve Story, released in 2001 and produced by Dave Matthews Band bassist Stefan Lessard (who also appears on the record) gained Sproule recognition, it is the music on Upstate Songs that will establish her as a considerable, mature songwriting talent.

In "Plea For A Good Night's Rest," the album's opening track, Sproule measures a good night sleep as a reward for a day well-spent and a life well-lived. Accompanying herself on acoustic guitar, Sproule's angelic voice sings, "Sleep she comes to steal the ones who/Fill their glass and leave the rest/Whose teeth get brushed, who eat enough/And know how to treat their friends." The brave, sonic venutre of "Should Have Been Snow" introduces a gunshot-beat snare drum and a grooving, bouncing electric bass, along with electric guitar distortions that interrupt the album's solemn quiet. "Upstate Songs boasts remarkable guitar work and a roller-coaster of a voice that can U-turn on a dime," says fellow City Salvage Records recording artist Paul Curreri, who co-produced Upstate Songs with Sproule. The Donaldson/Kahn-penned standard "My Baby Just Cares For Me" is accorded a sparkling, gleeful treatment by a young artist with, in addition to her own obvious songwriting abilities, a comprehensive appreciation for American popular and folk song traditions.

A splendid and sunny snapshot of this young woman, "Upstate Songs" captures Devon Sproule at her finest: candid, poetic and full of wonderful surprises. Her songwriting is unsurpassed and the delicacies of her remarkable voice and guitar playing are found in full.

Visit her Web site at http://www.devonsproule.com/.

ANother Cd of hers is Long Sleeve Story.

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