[Over the next few weeks, we'll be
presenting our
favorite local songs of the year, counting down from No. 25 to No. 1,
one track a day. Today, we take an in-depth look at song No. 16 on the
list -- and, please, feel free to click after the jump to hear a stream of the track. Also
after the jump, check out songs No. 50-17 in the Top 50 list that will
update as it grows...]
Sure, we already knew about the late '80s and early '90s likes of Edie Brickell and Lisa Loeb. Then, over the last 15 years, two others, a couple of women you may have heard of named Erykah Badu and Norah Jones, laid down their case. More recently, a former Polyphonic Spree member named Annie Clark would go on to earn just acclaim for her work under the St. Vincent moniker.
In 2010, a whole new crop of females made a case for Dallas being a female-dominated music scene. This was the year, surely, that Sarah Jaffe became a bona fide tour de force -- even outside the region. Same goes for Sachse chanteuse Dondria, who similarly saw her hype come to fruition this year. Not discounting the contributions female vocalists made to some favorite local acts in 2010 (see: Jencey Hirunrusme in Smile Smile and Taylor Rea in Ishi), the year was also a big one for local females largely unknown in the local scene, such as Katie Carroll, whose "Paper Girl" landed her on this year-end list at No. 32, and a self-taught pianist named Ashley Myrick.
Strident local music fans may recognize Myrick as the backup vocalist for The Beaten Sea, another act that blew up in 2010. But after The Beaten Sea blew up in the early part of the year, the second half of 2010 belonged to Myrick's own musical output, via her project called Lalagray.
Stream: Lalagray -- "The Hard Part"
KEEP THE DALLAS OBSERVER FREE...
Since we started the Dallas Observer, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Dallas, and we'd like to keep it that way. With local media under siege, it's more important than ever for us to rally support behind funding our local journalism. You can help by participating in our "I Support" program, allowing us to keep offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food and culture with no paywalls.