Alina Simone

8:30 p.m. Monday, July 23. Lemp Arts Center, 3301 Lemp Avenue.

Jul 18, 2007 at 4:00 am

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Ukrainian-born, NYC-based singer and songwriter Alina Simone has been lighting up the blogosphere (mainly because said 'sphere thinks she sounds like Cat Power). But she doesn't resemble Chan Marshall on Placelessness, her forthcoming full length debut on 54°40' or Fight!. She has the throat-scraped wail of PJ Harvey, the nervous drone of Yo La Tengo and the sex appeal of someone who likes to bite more than kiss. On "Saw-Edged Grass" she finds an undercurrent of liberation in pastoral scenes of green blades that cut both ways, and on "Black Water" she offers sage advice to the freak folks and indie fetishists who buzz around her opening gigs for Sub Pop and Kill Rock Star stars: "Never be the pretentious one and never be the one who cheats — just rock!"