Heartbreaking and healing: Eve Selis supports her niece Lauren Leigh’s solo album Ghost in the Picture

Lauren Leigh started singing around the age of five, accompanying the songs in The little Mermaid until she knows them all by heart. His aunt, local singer-songwriter Eve Selis, told her she was already a vocal prodigy. “I didn’t have perfect pitch,” says Leigh, “but I guess I played the notes and keys well.” Music is in his blood: besides Selis, his father Claudio Martin is a guitar virtuoso and her cousins ​​from the band Omo Cloud also perform. Now an adult and performing throughout San Diego, Leigh has fronted classic country bands such as Wild Heart, as well as sung with cold pink, High Tide Society, Analog Project, Back to the garden, and others. Recently, Leigh released her second solo album, ghost in the picture.

Half of the songs on the album were written about a pandemic romance gone awry. Also, her best friend died that year and her son was admitted to the hospital. “I was dealing with many variations of grief and loss,” she says. “This album is a reaction to that – basically, a lot of heavy stuff.” His recent failed relationship with a fellow songwriter is alluded to in the first track, “Foul Play.” “It’s a breakup song, [about] being angry because it’s over: doubt, questioning and crying in the shower. And there’s a song called “I Loved You,” which sounds a bit like a heartbreaking romantic Etta James song. She also wrote a song for her son Jack while he was in hospital, “Jack’s Lullaby”, with other songs addressing topics of depression, mental health awareness and healing.

She says she wasn’t thinking about making an album last year, but had written a bunch of new songs based on recent events and experiences. Then a friend told Leigh she needed to do this album right away, shelling out $5,000 via PayPal to get her started and as executive producer. “I was like, ‘Oh shit, oh my God, we are going to make this album.’ I went ahead and started imagining in my head what the album looked like, what it sounded like, and which songs I wanted to include and which I didn’t. The project was recorded at two studios and completed in September. All instrumentals except drums were recorded at Stairway Studios in Los Angeles over a weekend. Lauren employed the musicians herself, booking an Airbnb for everyone and paying them for their time. “Two full days, two twelve-hour days, and it was exhausting.”

The percussion parts were recorded at his drummer, while the vocals were tracked with local mainstays Jeff Berley in his satellite studio. Some of the backing vocals were recorded at the San Diego home of Josh Taylor and Sandy King (King Taylor Project), after Leigh found herself with a few new ideas but more studio time. “They’re brilliant at arranging vocals, especially backing vocals,” she says. After Taylor and King passed, the masters were sent back to Berkley for final mixing. There are a total of eight songs on the album. “It’s like drugs!” said Leigh of the ordeal. “That’s why people keep doing this, it’s a crazy process. Basically, you’re ruining yourself just to hear your own songs the way you want to hear them.

Leigh performs regularly at St. Mark Golf Course in San Marcos, where she will perform on Friday, December 30 for a late afternoon set. The album release party for ghost in the picture is scheduled for January 4 at Belly Up in Solana Beach. It will be a family affair, with his cousin Omo Cloud’s band opening the show and an appearance from Aunt Selis. “It was very important to have my aunt on the show, I want it to be a big night. She’s little Lauren, who’s about five years old and watches Eve perform, and I want to go on stage with her. It’s not just me sitting with her band; it’s us who share a bill together. She’s always been a heroine of mine. Loved ones will take turns appearing with Leigh, including her father Claudio Martin , who will play guitar on the opening song.