Uncommon Ground ^ Vanessa Peters

Vanessa Peters
It may be Katherine Mansfield‘s line, but Vanessa Peters has made it her own. Every one of her songs, whose styles range from folk to pop/rock to Americana, exhibit this quiet, beautiful truth – that no matter how hard you may try to escape it, your past is always with you, and it has made you who are. Vanessa has taken the little bits of her life down off the fence and is busy weaving them into something incredible.

Though she's been compared to some pretty big names - Sheryl Crow, Shawn Colvin, Patty Griffin - Vanessa Peters has a style all her own. Quietly but quickly, she has become a dynamic new addition to the Texas music scene. Though she is now a resident of Austin, she got her start playing small, acoustic venues in Houston and College Station. Her easy stage banter and crowd rapport won her a loyal following at open mics and her solo acoustic shows, and soon the requests for a recording began pouring in. So in February 2002, Vanessa headed into a small studio to record her 6-song debut EP ‘mirabilandia.’

With its easy charm, intelligent lyrics, and impressive guitar work, ‘mirabilandia’ gave her fans a taste of what was to come. And with the release of ‘sparkler,’ her first full-length album, she has more than fulfilled the promise she offered to her first listeners. ‘sparkler’ shines with insight, grace, and incredible musicianship, and with this fantastic album tucked under her belt, Vanessa is taking Austin by storm, most recently performing a set at the legendary Cactus Café opening for Ruthie Foster and opening for the folk songwriter Carrie Newcomer. She can be seen around town at venues such as The Saxon Pub, Momo’s, Hickory Street Bar and Grill, ABIA, Café Mundi, and Mozart’s. Plans are in the works for a coast-to-coast tour this fall, and Vanessa has already begun writing for the next album. With her mix of DIY determination, charisma, and songwriting, there’s no stopping her.
Watch out – this is one firecracker that’s about to explode.