Allyson Seconds' debut release, "Bag of Kittens," despite the sinister connotations of the title, is the result of much fun and hard work between Allyson and songwriter Anton Barbeau. It's the sort of album that feels a bit like spring-into-summer, with Al's voice always a source of front-and-center delight. But listen close and you'll hear all sorts of dark, end-of-the-world whispers as well. That said, "Bag of Kittens" is a joy to listen to. Allyson and Anton are both avowed pop fans, obsessed with melody and harmony. We'll let them each tell you a bit more about how this collaboration came to be... Allyson Seconds: "I love Elvis Costello, but I sound nothing like him. As long as I can remember, my voice has always gone right to the harmony line. I remember as a kid forcing my big sister to sing the straight line to the theme song for Davey Crockett (y'know, king of the wild frontier) over and over again just so I could sing the harmony part. I've had the amazing fortune of growing up in Sacramento, California where there was not much to do but music and art, so some very creative folks started doing very creative things and I was able to sing with quite a few of them (Kevin Seconds, Jonah Matranga, Kepi...). Oh yeah, and I won the female vocalist award 2 years in a row in the Sammies 1999 and 2000. I learned to play guitar and keyboards so I could have something to do with my hands. Mostly I just wanted to sing and get that locked in feeling of two voices doing harmony. Curiosity and secret daydreaming lead me to wanting to know more about how I'd sound singing lead and that's where ‘Bag Of Kittens’ comes in..." Anton: "During one of my trips back to Sacramento, Allyson asked if I'd write her a song so she could try out singing lead, after years of doing harmonies. I came up with "I Used To Say Your Name," and we recorded it in my living room. We were pleased with the result, and Al asked for a couple more songs. We crammed loads of work into a short time, and I headed back to England to finish overdubbing and mixing the tracks. I carried on writing, and within months our one song had multiplied into nearly enough tunes for an proper album. Allyson flew over to the UK in Summer 2008, and we gigged around England and in Paris, all while trying out more songs and doing as much recording as Cambridge would allow. She flew home, I grabbed some friends (Gabe and Vince from CAKE, Kimberley Rew, Stornoway...) to help add more color to the record, then I also flew back to Sacramento where we put finishing touches on the final few tracks..."