Alice finds her pot of gold

lice Russell is as raw as a fresh oyster -” well, her music is anyway. The British soul sensation is hitting the festival circuit this year and she hopes Aussie audiences will fall in love with her music like her home country has.

The singer has been riding high on a musical rainbow but now has found the treasure at the end -” her new album is called Pot of Gold.

The title comes from the song Turn and Run where she sings, Poor as beggars on a pot of gold.

Believe me, we are all poor as beggars but inside we have our pot of gold, Russell said.

It’s a kind of wish spell for us all as inside no matter what happens to us, however grey we may feel inside we all have a beautiful glowing pot of gold -¦ just sometimes we forget to feel and see it but it is there.

Russell describes her music as a munkeroo, which (I think) means a combination of honesty and realness. It’s the fourth album to date but with this baby she wanted to give the listener a live performance to enjoy at home.

The songs themselves just fell into a group. We had a few that didn’t make it on to the album and a few songs that totally changed in groove, tempo and style, she said.

We wanted to hit out at the start so you have Turn and Run and Two Steps, then Dreamer takes you down a bit then the gospel style in the middle with Got The Hunger? and Lights Went Out.

Later on we end with All Alone as it feels like a nighttime track that takes you back down to the ground to end the album.

info: Alice Russell is at the Beck’s Bar in Sydney on 29 January, in Melbourne at Soko Cargo on 4 February and at the Playground Weekender on 6 February at Wiseman’s Ferry. Details: www.alicerussell.com.