Fri., Aug. 30, Brianna Lea Pruett

What Leonard Cohen did for the urban coffee shop, Brianna Lea Pruett does for Northern Californian mountain music. She provides a similar soft-spoken poetic voice, which is gritty and soulful as much as it is hushed. Her music, though purely roots-oriented (Americana, folk, jazz, blues), is atmospheric and somehow airy at once—almost incomplete in its compositions. She's a bit Emmylou Harris, but with an almost sparse desert quality about her voice. Despite the starkness, it's quite emotional and breathtaking once the listener fully engages with it. She is putting out her fifth release, Gypsy Bells, on Canyon Records in October. 1111 H Street, www.briannaleapruett.com.