Singer/songwriter Leigh Marble's music is based in traditional folk, filtered through an eclectic blend of folk-rock, punk, hip-hop, and indie influences for a sound his press kit describes as a cross between Tom Waits and Fugazi, though Ani DiFranco, Beck, G. Love & Special Sauce, and various members of the anti-folk scene are also useful touchstones. Raised in New England, Marble graduated from Brown University in 1997 and immediately moved to the artistically friendly climes of Portland, OR, spurred by a burgeoning friendship with Portland-based producer and studio owner Larry Crane (Elliott Smith, the Decemberists, etc.), whom he had met at a conference sponsored by TapeOp magazine. Following a cassette demo, Marble's first proper release was a Crane-produced split single with fellow New England alt-folkie (and Brown graduate) Erin McKeown, Anticipation et Denouement, released on Marble's own Laughing Stock Records imprint in 1998. Following a diversionary side trip into ironic hip-hop with the jokey rap trio the Buttery Lords, Marble returned to his solo career with 2003's Peep. Although Marble recorded Peep almost entirely by himself, he formed a backing group for live dates, consisting of organist and accordionist Ben Macy and drummer Jason Russell. Both also appear on Marble's second solo album, Red Tornado, released in the fall of 2007. In between Marble's solo records, the Buttery Lords released an expanded "collector's edition" of their previously hard to find debut album, Buttered for Her Pleasure. ~ Stewart Mason