Chanteuse /shahn’ters/, n. (Fr.) Singer, esp. nightclub singer. Esp. singer - in smoky, red velvet type nightclub - of songs about love lost and found…and lust. Flame-haired Sydney artist Amanda Easton releases ‘Chanteuse’ – the follow up to the self-titled debut which delivered two Top 10 indie chart (AIR chart) tunes and radio play nation-wide. It still features the contagious pop we’ve come to expect from Amanda, but this time it’s more theatrical and features chilled-out electronic beats with a tinge of blues and jazz. Resonant double-bass and emotive muted trumpets sit alongside electronic loops and electric guitars showcasing Amanda’s rich soaring vocals in a more emotional, mature second album. The album was recorded at Leichhardt’s Love Hz studios, with producers Michael Carpenter and Matt Fell. Perhaps best known as a ‘PopTart’, Amanda has performed with hundreds of different singer songwriters and bands at that weekly Sydney showcase night promoting original female-fronted music acts over the last six years. She is also one of the most in-demand backing vocalists in Sydney, having toured regularly with Wendy Matthews and Richard Clapton, performed with Powderfinger and Candice Alley at the ARIA Awards and sung alongside legendary Aussie artists such as Vanessa Amarosi, Marcia Hines and James Reyne. Amanda says: 'I've just released my second album ('Chanteuse') and it's really got me thinking. How did this all start? I'm pretty sure that when I started out, I just wanted to be a popstar. I released my debut - an album of pop tunes - and while it had its successes, somewhere along the way I discovered the excitement of just being creative and expressive for its own sake. Who would've thought! That 'popstar' ambition seems a million miles away. Now, don't think that doesn't mean I don't want to be successful, or that staying in my room and singing into a tape recorder will be enough to make me happy...But what it does mean is that I'm going to make music that I love, that makes me feel good, even if it's not 'cool', 'radio-friendly', 'targetted' to the right 'market' etc. I'm going to perform the way I want to and make music that moves me. So now I'm going to throw myself off that creative cliff, with nothing but my muse to keep me afloat and hope that you may be there with open arms and mind to make my landing a little bit softer. And if you're not, I know that I still did the right thing because I've had a ball making this album and I think it's the most 'me ' of anything I've ever done. I hope you'll give it a listen. xx' www.amandaeaston.com www.myspace.com/amandaeaston