Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Add Lacey Brown to the short list of Season 9 contestants to release post-Idol music.

Lacey’s new five-track EP, “Let It Go,” went on sale today and is available through Amazon.com and iTunes.

The 25-year-old from Amarillo, Texas, finished 12th on Idol last year, so she missed out on the show’s summer tour.

But she’s planning a string of tour dates to support her EP, including appearances at CMA Fest in Nashville on June 10 and 11.

I downloaded “Let It Go” this morning. Gotta say, I’m impressed. After three listens, in fact, I’d call this the most pleasant musical surprise we’ve gotten from a former Idol contestant so far this year.

Anyone who remembers Lacey from Idol will also recall that she has a slightly quirky sound.

And she sounds a lot better singing her own music than she ever did singing cover songs on Idol.

Each of the five songs here has a neat little twist that keeps things interesting, from the harmonizing on the title track, to the hand claps on “Okay” to the participation of what sounds like a full la-la-la chorus 2:40 into “Day to Day.”

A banjo solo sets the mood for “Love Is War.”  And Lacey simply sounds great on “Boy,” a simple little stripped-down love song and my favorite of the five tracks.

You can also order the EP through Lacey’s website and find out more about those tour dates through her Facebook page.