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Trauma Records Bree Sharp Biography
A Cheap And Evil Girl, the galvanizing debut from 23-year-old,
singer-songwriter Bree Sharp, is a smart, fearless mix of folk, rock and pop.
Bree has long been influenced by singer-songwriters ranging from Elvis
Costello to Bob Dylan and Patti Smith to Patty Griffin, and is interested in songs
that are clever and atmospheric. Comparable wit, wisdom and nerve can be found in
every track on A Cheap and Evil Girl.
Born in Philadelphia, Bree grew up wanting to be an actor. She moved to
New York to attend NYU to study at a theatre company run by acclaimed playwright David
Mamet. It was in New York that she ran headlong into her true calling.
"A lot of the songs come from who I am, but some come from the blurring
edges between fantasy and reality. I'd love to ride a bike in the desert, seduce men and
steal their money, like I sing about in 'Faster, Faster’; my songs let me do all of these
scandalous and dirty things that I might not do in real life. Music is a great venue for
expression as an outlet or an escape."
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"I started playing guitar when I was fifteen," says Bree. "I would hang
out and play music with friends in high school, and I remember them saying things like,
'You've got a really good voice’, but mostly I didn’t pay attention to it." After much
prodding from her friends in college, Bree recorded demos that quickly led to her deal
with Trauma.
Songs like the sultry, Russ Meyer-inspired "Faster, Faster" ("Faster,
faster I’m a trashy motorcycle beauty/The road is all I’ve ever known/Faster faster,
I'm the star in this disaster movie/And in the end I ride alone") showcase her flair
for both lyricism and drama. "In writing my songs, I get to put on different masks and
outfits and be another person," says Bree.
The ironic and pointed "America" ("I embrace your legacy-the models and the apathy/I know the late night network commonwealth is there to help me help myself") further addresses our media-driven culture.
"’The Cheap and Evil Girl’ is definitely one of my fantasies," says Bree. "The title was inspired by pulp fiction post cards I found in a novelty store," she reveals.
"The dramatic copy from those books are appealing to me. I'd love to be
that cheap and evil girl, with all the sex and danger that goes with it."
That's not to say that the album doesn't have its share of soul-baringly intimate songs. Searingly honest tracks like "Walk Away" and "Smitten" ("Good intentions, true regret/Can not eclipse love's desperation") are achingly true to life.
"Those are very real songs, and they're very personal. 'David Duchovny' is personal too, but there are other layers to it. It is about David Duchovny specifically, but in a larger in sense, it’s also about pop stars in general and our desires to meet them, know them and be them.
"I’m writing three-minute pop songs," explains Bree. "But I want to do something that makes you think - that’s not ladled into your mouth. That’s what I like about The X-Files…you have to figure it out for yourself and it always leaves you wanting more."