MISSY HIGGINS AIMS TO GET U.S. IN HER CORNER CATCHY YET PERSONAL SONGS MADE AUSSIE A HOMEMADE HIT.Byline: Fred Shuster Music Writer Missy Higgins is hoping what happened in Australia doesn't stay down under. In her own country, the singer-songwriter is a household name. Her albums sell by the truckload truck·load n. The quantity that a truck can hold. truckload n → camión m lleno , she regularly tops the chart and sells out wherever she performs. Now she's about to find out if the same magic works in the U.S. In her attempt to go global, Higgins relocated from Melbourne to Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. to record her sophomore effort with veteran producer Mitchell Froom. The result, titled "On a Clear Night," will be issued Tuesday, an event she'll celebrate in concert that night at the El Rey El Rey, which means "The King" in the Spanish language, may refer to:
Higgins sings vibrant, personal ballads and rockers. The song "Where I Stood" has received airplay air·play n. The broadcasting of an audio or audiovisual recording on the air over radio or television. airplay Noun the broadcast performances of a record on radio on TV's "Grey's Anatomy  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled. ," "One Tree Hill" and
"Smallville." Entertainment Weekly says Higgins "shows a
depth reminiscent of early Suzanne Vega and Sarah McLachlan: catchy
hooks ... just right."
Higgins' breakthrough came with the release of her debut, "The Sound of White," which went nine times platinum and was Australia's best-selling best·sell·er also best seller n. A product, such as a book, that is among those sold in the largest numbers. best album of 2005. The album would be nominated nom·i·nate tr.v. nom·i·nat·ed, nom·i·nat·ing, nom·i·nates 1. To propose by name as a candidate, especially for election. 2. To designate or appoint to an office, responsibility, or honor. for 11 ARIA awards, the Australian equivalent of the Grammys. We reached Higgins, 24, as she prepared for a monthlong tour. You really made it big at home. The whole thing was a blur blur (blur) indistinctness, clouding, or fogging. spectacle blur the indistinct vision with spectacles occurring after removal of contact lenses, especially non–gas-permeable lenses; it is . One minute I was just some opening act nobody had ever heard of, and the next minute I was playing to 20,000 people in (Sydney's) Centennial Park Centennial Park can mean:
How's life in L.A.? It's everything they say -- totally anonymous, intimidating in·tim·i·date tr.v. in·tim·i·dat·ed, in·tim·i·dat·ing, in·tim·i·dates 1. To make timid; fill with fear. 2. To coerce or inhibit by or as if by threats. , hard to get your head around. The people are unlike anywhere else because the industry plays such a big part of their lives. People in L.A. are wrapped up in the lives of stars, whether they know them or not. After living here for a while, you kind of forget that there are more important things going on. I'm giving it a year. How has the audience taken to you? I've always felt embraced by the people who come hear me in the U.S. I always feel really welcome. The thing about it is, if you want to make any kind of a dent at all, you have to tour extensively. It's very much a case of doing it yourself. That's what I intend to do. The Australian press made it a big deal when you appeared on the cover of a lesbian magazine. They got very excited and wanted to ask me personal questions about my private life, which put me in a weird place. Songwriters get into writing songs in the first place because they need a way to express themselves because they have trouble doing it the way everyone else does. Then I'm suddenly being asked to explain myself. They think the public is fascinated by the personal lives of famous people. It's hard to live with the fact that people want to talk about your personal life and want to get into sexuality and that sort of thing. I'm not comfortable talking about my personal life. It's really none of their business. The songs divulge everything I'm prepared to divulge. Fred Shuster, (818) 713-3676 fred.shuster@dailynews.com MISSY HIGGINS >Where: El Rey Theatre, 5515 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. >When: 8 p.m. Tuesday. >How much: $18.50. (213) 480-3232, www.ticketmaster.com. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) no caption (Missy Higgins) |
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