She may hail from Memphis, but Amy Lavere's music is eerily evocative of Austin. A bright, talented upright bass player with a knack for digestible songwriting, she crafts sleek ditties that glide along like the margarita-soaked Sundays we know all too well. Archer Records, her alma mater, got a handful when they signed up this one. There's elements of self-aware sarcasm and a easygoing resignation, insulated by smooth C&W rhythms and her lounge-y coo. One can't help but wonder if she clandestinely spends her summers here in the heart of Texas.

Amy Lavere
Memphis, TN
Latest Release: Anchors & Anvils, 2007
Friday the 14th, 2:40pm, BMI Stage

Hot on the heels of what's sure to be a consciousness-raising performance at part two of the "God, Sex, and Me Teen Conference" in bucolic hell-hole Beaumont, TX, "Progresssive"-Christian R&B songbird Loretta Williams Gurnell will be adeptly dropping the soul-filled—and we mean soul-filled—grooves at ACL Fest. Seriously folks, she's got great pipes and a genuine passion for what she's doing, so if you dig peeps like the Reverend Al Green, you shouldn't miss this wonderful woman's ACL debut. Praise be.

Loretta Williams Gurnell
Houston, TX
Latest Release: It's a New Day, 2006
Friday the 14th, 11:30am, WaMu Stage