Lisa Bouchelle

Lisa Bouchelle has traveled through many cities and music styles building a sound of sensual, thoughtful pop.

Her songs have made it to venues in areas including Los Angeles, California, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Georgia and New Orleans, Louisiana. This has afforded the artist an opportunity to be appreciated by audiences excited to hear new music, she said.

Places like Georgia welcome a local artist since they don't see many touring bands, while New Orleans is filled with music industry heads looking for a new style to add the variety in its scene, she said.

"They eat music [in New Orleans]," Bouchelle said. "Any stage I can be on where people are diggin' music, I am into."

Being on the road provides her with inspiration for material.

"I've written so much about things that happen to me when I am traveling," Bouchelle said.

Her song, "The Waiting Girl," came from a Georgia statue of a woman waving to every passing ship until her lover returned to her. New Orleans, however, is Bouchelle's main source of creation.

Various life elements surface into her music, she said.

"An intellectual social consciousness kind of seeps into my music, even when it's not about that topic," she said.

Sometimes her songs come spontaneously, but they can also be planned.

"A lot of times, when I am not collaborating, it's just spontaneous," she said. "It's almost like you are a medium for [the songs]. It's like something happens through you and you just spit it out."

Fans may remember Bouchelle as the vocalist and primary writer of her band, October Baby. Bouchelle said over the years her pop-style has evolved into something more loop-based, but always remains acoustic-based.

"It has evolved as influences effect my writing and times change," she said.

That progress will be reflected in a six-song EP tentatively titled "Passion Makes Perfect," which is in the works. Her pre-release single, "A Kiss is Worth 1,000 Words," is unique to today's radio with its European-genre blend and romantic message.

Bouchelle dabbled in progressive music before female singers were accepted in the style, she said. This helped her expand her vocal style giving her more range to sing her vocally-challenging and diverse music.

A new team of professionals is helping to build her career. These include Hal Selzer, her manager, a well-known music writer and player in New Jersey. Selzer has helped Bouchelle, who has always been self-managed, give up control.

"Hal is great at what he does," Bouchelle said. "He can do it better than I can. This allows me to spend my time focusing on the artistic side, which is ultimately what I want to do."

[ Website: www.lisabouchelle.com ]