An Interview with
BRENDA XU

One the great things about interviewing rising artists is that they are still accessible, approachable and (usually) nice.  Brenda Xu is a good example of that – and I have the feeling that even after she makes it (and she will) she’ll still be sweet as pie.  Brenda likes to joke about her (alleged) ego, but that was nowhere in evidence the morning I called for our chat.  That day found Brenda in bed with a virus – but she insisted on forging ahead with the interview.

Here are excerpts:

ATO:  You sure you want to do this?  I can call another time.

Brenda:   Oh, no – I’m OK.  I can talk.  I’m fine.

ATO:   You have a gig coming up in a couple of days – hope you get better by then.

Brenda:   Yeah, I’m a little nervous about that, but I think I’ll be OK.

ATO:   Speaking of gigs – you play out a lot.

Brenda:   I made a New Year’s resolution to play out at least once a week – and overall I’ve been doing more than that.  The more I play the less nervous I get – and I’ve been trying to work on my stage presence too.  So, yeah, I try to play out a lot.

ATO:   You’ve been pushing it hard since January – but how long have you been playing altogether?

Brenda:   Since November.

ATO:   What?  November?  Of last year?  You’re joking.

Brenda:   Well, actually I started playing in high school but then stopped totally while I was in college.  And then in November I picked it up again and started seriously working on writing songs.  My first solo performance in about 5 years was in January.

ATO:   Amazing.  Are you a self-taught guitarist?

Brenda:   Yes.  I play an acoustic and an electric.

ATO:   Have you thought about joining a band?

Brenda:   Hmmm.  I’ve collaborated with others a little in the past, but I enjoy the freedom I have working solo.  It was scary at first – being out there alone – but like I said I’m pushing myself to do it because there are things I want to do musically that might not work if other people are involved.

ATO:   Musically how do you define yourself?

Brenda:  I guess I’d call it “alternative”.  I know that most of my stuff is pretty mellow, but another side of me wants to rock out.  In fact,          “What I’ve Got Inside” was written on an electric guitar – so it sort of started out as a different kind of song.

ATO:   Speaking of your songs – please describe your writing process.  Where do you get the inspiration?

Brenda:   I guess most of it comes from personal experiences.  I don’t always sit down to write something based on a personal situation, but depending on whatever is going on – if I’m having a bad day or I’m angry – things just come out. And a lot of times I get motivated to write if I’ve been listening to music I really like.  I just take off from that.  My best songs seem to just come out on their own and they happen pretty quickly.

ATO:   Do you have a CD?

Brenda:   Not right now.  The recordings on the MySpace page were done on my computer with a program called Sonar.  But I’m thinking about going into a studio to do something that will sound better.  I’m currently looking around at producers.

ATO:   Should be easy to find one inSan Diego with the lively music scene you have there.

Brenda:   I’m still new to this, and although I’ve been meeting a lot of people I still think there’s a lot to the local music community I have yet to discover.  And I have to say theSan Diego music scene is really nice because it’s just not cutthroat at all.  I haven’t ever gotten the feeling that anyone dislikes me or thinks I’m their competition. 

ATO:   Are you aSan Diego native?

Brenda:   No, I was born inHarbin, China, and grew up in a suburb ofL.A.  I came to San Diego for school – and then just stayed.  And this is where I’m starting out with my playing – and, like I said, it’s so good here.  Everybody has been just so positive about my music - and very supportive of what I’m doing.

ATO:   As are we, Brenda.  Thank you so much for spending this time with us.

Brenda:  And thank you!

NOTE:  Since this interview was conducted things have been moving quickly for Brenda.  Her club schedule has stepped up, she was named Artist of the Week on listenlocalsd.com, she has had promotional photos taken – and best of all she made that foray into the studio and has recorded a fresh batch of tunes.  Be sure and check them out on her Myspace page: www.myspace.com/brendaxu

Go, Brenda, go!

The Xu Fits
A totally biased review of Brenda Xu
By Sitemaster Steve

So there I was rummaging around through the artists pages on MySpace – that great musical repository of the good, the bad and the overwhelmingly mediocre.  This one sounds like Macy Gray sucking helium.  Click.  This one sounds like wet cats in a sack.  Click.  This one sounds like everybody else. Ho hum.  Double click.  This one – wait a minute – this one is different. This one is good. Very good.  No click.  Put the clicker away.  That’s how I discovered Brenda Xu.

Why did I not mouseclick Brenda Xu away to cyber oblivion?  And, more tellingly, why did I bookmark her site and return every day for another dose?  Well, check out her material here and on MySpace – and I think you’ll get a clue.  But be careful – Brenda Xu is highly addictive and once she sneaks into your head she’ll replace all the other little voices in there.  You won’t be displeased with that, but you’ll wonder how and why it happened.  Permit me to enlighten you.

Dissecting Brenda
Part one – the voice

The first thing you’ll notice, naturally, is the voice.  And what a natural voice it is – unvarnished, untarnished and unspoiled by technical artifice. It’s real, it’s honest, and it speaks the truth to those who are willing to listen carefully.  And you must listen carefully because Brenda sings in a low, breathy register so quiet you can barely hear it over the sound of your own heartbeat. Trust me, though – this is a very good thing, because what Brenda lacks in power she makes up for in presence.  She sounds like she is right there – not just in the same room but on the next pillow.  And she sings to you – not at you – in a fashion that’s as warm and comfy as a feather bed on a Winter morning.   How refreshing it is, in these days of American Idol histrionics, to find a vocalist who doesn’t have to holler to make a point.  Brenda doesn’t need to do that – she whispers louder than most people can scream. 

So Brenda’s got the instrument – can she play it?  Oh, you betcha.  Phrasing is Brenda’s long suit.  Her willowy delivery runs red hot and ice cold and registers everything from little-girl vulnerability to world-weary wisdom to deadpan indifference.  She can assume the devil, the angel, the coquette and the mortally wounded lover.  She drags out her syllables, clips her words and often drops right off the VU meter.  All to stunning effect.  Brenda has the aural ability to grab you in a velvet vice and drag you along with her wherever she goes – loving you one moment and tossing you out the car window the next.  And she accomplishes all of this with nothing more than her unpretentious voice and an unhurried style that never quite takes its hands out of its pockets.  I really don’t know of any other modern-day singer who can do that.

Part two – the songs

I believe that Brenda Xu could sing a grocery list and be interesting – but it just so happens she’s a songwriter too.  And her songs are excellent vehicles for her unique sound.  Structurally they are simple and straightforward with nice hooks and pleasing melodies.  In those respects they are, musically, a bit more mainstream than Brenda probably intended.  But listen deeper and you’ll hear intelligently spare lyrics that are obtuse in the right places, vague to the proper degree.  I like that because I don’t want to hear “you left me and I’m sad and I’m the best thing you ever had” stuff.  There’s no art in that.  But there’s art and poetry in the way Brenda communicates those same ideas. Her words are stark, blunt and direct, leading the listener to conclude that she hasn’t  a precious or coy bone in her body.  Brenda’s songs are loaded with images of love gone south, grievous loss, painful longing and deep regret.  And yet, there is scarcely any bitterness to be found.  Instead, these are works overflowing with grace, tenderness, humanity and, yes, passion.

Ask Brenda what inspires her music or what her lyrics are really about and you won’t get much of an answer.  “I’d rather let the songs speak for themselves,” she says.  And that’s O.K. because leaving the music up for individual interpretation makes it all the more universal.  In fact, the songs of Brenda Xu are so universal in their lyrical honesty that if they were cartoons they would be the kind you cut out and tape to the refrigerator. 

And in conclusion …

So what, in toto, is this performing entity we know as Brenda Xu?  Perhaps she can best be summed up by describing what she is not.  She is not a virtuoso guitarist nor does she (as far as I know) possess operatic pipes.  But Brenda Xu doesn’t need those things because she is not really competing against the rest of the noisemakers in the music world.  She’s more like a stealth jet cruising low and slow and under the radar.  She’s passing undetected for the time being, but mark my words at just the right moment she’ll pop out of the clouds and fill the sky. 

Point is, Brenda’s supposed technical shortcomings are actually her strongest attributes. Those marvelous flaws are the qualities that define her sound, making it real and keeping it honest. Imperfection has created something very perfect indeed – an artist who is not afraid to be original. Nope, this girl doesn’t sound like anybody else you’ve ever heard. She is, thankfully, operating on a different plane, in a different realm.  And in that particular universe – a fair and just world where true talent is rewarded – Brenda Xu rules.

Is Your Music On
The ATO Jukebox?

We are always on the lookout for great tunes in every genre.  If you are an artist with original music you'd like to load up on the ATO Jukebox, just email us.
contact@asiantalentonline.com