Outspoken. Artistic. Unpredictable. Survivor. These are all words that describe singer/songwriter Aimee Allen. She has gone from writing harder edged punk songs, to rallying around presidential candidate Ron Paul, to surviving a brutal attack after leaving a recording studio one night and living to write about it. Prior to my interview with Aimee I had read all there was to read about her and her career. There is much more to an artist, however, than what you see on paper (or the internet I should say).

I received an advance copy of Aimee's new record 'A Little Happiness' a little while back, and I have to say it was nothing I expected. For someone previously known to be outspoken and described as "explosive," this new album definitely shows an emotion and depth that not even her most devoted of fans could have imagined. The album itself is the product of an artist's emotions pouring out all over the pages she is writing her lyrics on. It is heartfelt, moving, sad and uplifting all at the same time. That being said, none of it prepared me for the experience I had in April of this year when I went to L.A. for a visit.

I had the pleasure of being invited to see Aimee Allen perform live at the infamous Roxy on the Sunset Strip. I've been to more concerts that I could ever count, and the great majority of those shows were heart pumping rock shows. I knew this performance would be a little more subdued, but it became so much more than that. The minute Aimee took the stage, the audience was one with her. She sang songs from the new record that has yet to be released, and it was as if the fans already knew every word and felt the deep emotions behind each song. Listening to Aimee sing was a pure treat for me. Her voice is beautiful and knowing how very personal the new record is to her made it all the more beautiful to hear in person.

Recently I spent some time with Aimee on the phone to do a long awaited interview. She was funny, friendly and very honest. She was also breaking California's "no talking on the cell phone while on the road" law, but we didn't really care. The audio interview is broken into two segments since she lost her cell signal halfway through. To hear parts one and two of my chat with Aimee, you know what to do.

Aimee Allen interview, part 1

Aimee Allen interview part 2