Independent's Day Radio

Simone White comes by her musical talent honestly; her grandmother performed in burlesque shows, her grandfather wrote poetry, her mother played folk music and her aunt wrote pop songs. With this kind of pedigree, it is no surprise that White's quirky compositions display the kind of assured quality earned by generations in the arts. Though born in Hawaii and currently residing in California, White's music bears no distinctly American geographical earmarks. Instead, electronic textures blend with hushed guitars to create a prescient sonic palette over which she sings introspective lyrics in a hushed, breathy voice. The effect is vaguely and satisfyingly British, which makes sense given that she is signed to the Honest Jon's Record Company, a record label that is run by the English artist Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz. There also are stylistic nods to artists as disparate as hushed folk hero Nick Drake and boundary-smashing St. Vincent spread across White's four albums, making her music at once modern and