Janine Schaults

A publicist couldn't dream up a better story. The very first song Missy Higgins wrote won a prestigious radio contest in her native Australia that had record labels knocking down her door only to be told by the spunky 17-year-old that she was determined to finish high school and take a six-month backpacking trip across Europe before making a record. Upon returning from Europe with a slew of new songs, Higgins recorded "The Sound of White," which was released in Australia last fall and has since gone platinum close to six times. She quickly became a KCRW darling and a favorite of influential L.A. DJ Nic Harcourt; exposure on the California public radio station was pivotal in her signing with the Warner label in the U.S.

Hardly the household name here that she is Down Under, Higgins now embarks on a U.S. tour supporting Howie Day as well as the American release of "The Sound of White."

"In the States I'm starting from scratch and it's making first impressions...and trying to prove myself, so it's a challenge and I really enjoy it," Higgins says on the phone from Melbourne.

It won't be difficult for Higgins to enchant the crowd with her crisp jazz-inflected vocals and mature, piano-driven compositions. "Scar" and "The Special Two" are medium-tempo laments brimming with a plucky self-awareness that runs through the entire album.

Riding around in a tour bus sounds like heaven for Higgins, who has yet to experience life in a hotel on wheels. She'll get her wish on this upcoming trek through the States. "It's going to be really fun and apparently there's telly on there too," she exclaims. But mostly she's looking forward to stopping in Chicago, the site of her first International House of Pancakes experience. "I took a picture of the pancake because it was so magnificent," Higgins recalls fondly. Someone's gotta take this girl out for breakfast. Missy Higgins plays with Howie Day and Gavin DeGraw on July 14 at Lakefront Pavilion at Northerly Island Chicago.

(2005-07-19)

Also by Janine Schaults

Sound Check
Like the omnipresent confessionals in reality-TV shows, Mark Geary's online tour diary is a fascinating peek into a road warrior's thought process
(2005-06-09)

Soundcheck
Wesley Stace is sitting in his Brooklyn home waiting for the FedEx man to pick up the final manuscript of his first novel so it can be delivered to his copy editor in Boston
(2005-01-25)

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