Every Thought

It has been too long since a singer/songwriter came down the pike with something to say - and a haunting, crystal-clear voice in which to say it.The result is infinitely easy on the ears, suggesting Shauna Burns is here to stay.The album also features James Clark on drums; Ryan Tilby on bass, guitar, mandolin and banjo; Steve Lemmon on guitar; Caroline Kemper on Celtic harp; and Rick Kemper on Irish whistle.

At once intense and soothing, "Every Thought" is the result of a lifetime of music. Burns, inspired by her mother's love of the piano, began playing as a small child. By the time she was 15, she had discovered her own talent as a singer and was already composing.

"Music has always been there for me," Burns explained. "It's really been a close friend and teacher, drawing me in like this unexpected force, pulling me. It's the journey, how I view everything around me. When the window is foggy, the music makes it clear in my mind. It comes from the most pure place I've ever known."

With "Every Thought," Burns has drawn on her own life experiences to produce a collection of songs filled with raw emotion and melodies that echo long after the music has stopped. Emotional vampires are examined in "Ghosts & Vampires," a sister's love is sweet in "Toes," clarity dawns in the nine- minute piano ballad "Nonsense," endurance triumphs over torment in "Camelot's Waiting," and jealousy is revealed in "Maryland." The album's other seven tracks are equally compelling.

"'Every Thought' is about every conscious thought - coming from an unconscious place to a conscious one," said Burns. "Each song is a piece of the puzzle. For me it's about realizing your own potential, what is in your hands. We all have this power to harness our own ability. I truly believe music is, at its core, a subconscious energy speaking. Sometimes it takes a while to understand what is being said, but at the end of the day I try to break it down one molecule at a time, to find its meaning, to discover what is trying to be said. These are the questions I ask myself every day as a songwriter."