Shh. Don’t tell my boss, but I actually missed Priya Thomas at NXNE. I don’t know what happened. It was circled in my guidebook and everything! Maybe I’d had a few to many… Anyway, lucky for me, as I was putting together my NXNE notes together for this series, some good news floated across my desk: Priya Thomas, June 17th, at Rancho Relaxo.
   Now, don’t tell my boss, but here I am at Rancho Relaxo, and as it turns out I’m quite tipsy. It’s been a gorgeous day, and my neighbour across the hall (who’s moving out) invited me up to the rooftop for a little afternoon farewell "do". Several glasses of home-made rosé later, I’m a little bit the worse for wear. The obligatory social pitcher here at the Rancho (I’m here with a friend) does not help matters.
   When Priya Thomas finally begins to play, I immediately regret any dullness of my senses. Her voice is fantastic, the lyrics are compelling, and the arrangements are out of this world.
   Let’s start with the voice. Her intonation is perfect, but that’s not what impresses most. The true magic lies in her incredible dynamic range and flexibility of tone. Priya Thomas does not merely sing the song, she sings the song. In this and in other respects, her voice reminds me a lot of Tory Amos, with little bits of Sinead O’Connor’s edginess, Björk’s mania, and Sarah McLachlan’s sweet head voice thrown in to the mix.
   Speaking of the mix, the songs’ production is just as amazing as the singing. I am reminded of my favorite studio tracks from the aforementioned artists: Amos’ collaborations with Trent Reznor, O’Connor’s best The Lion and the Cobra and I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got cuts, and all my favorite Björk singles. A key difference – aside from Thomas’ incredible consistency of quality and sheer creativity – is that Priya Thomas produces all these tracks herself. It’s just not fair that one individual should be blessed with so much talent. That voice, and those studio chops too!
   My one problem with the set: it’s a bit like "Moby-oke" ( a term that tellingly compares Moby’s live performances to Karaoke ). Thomas is standing alone on stage with an audio playback device of some description, singing along with what are presumably her standard studio tracks ( minus vox, of course ). On the plus side, it is she who is laying down all the guitar parts live --with considerable skill. ( Damn her muli-talents! ) Still, there’s not really much of a show.
   One of the encores is "Priya Unplugged." It is this, surprisingly, that finally completely blows me away. Alone onstage with just an acoustic guitar, Priya’s voice at last gets the intimacy and immediacy it deserves. If I weren’t so liquored, the hair at the back of my neck would surely be standing on end.

Toronto based Priya Thomas obviously has far too much time and talent on her hands: her web site is gorgeous too. Go to http://www.priyathomas.com and sign up for the mailing list and buy her latest CD, Songs for Car Commercials. Do it now. ( You’ll thank me. )