he most highly trained FAWMer I know, Elaine DiMasi is also the only person I know who’s ever written a madrigal for a licorice advertisement.

Layers and layers of vocals. Keyboards, sparse or dense. Elaine’s advanced training in musical theory doesn’t necessarily make her music complex, any more than you’d call Enya’s 128-track tunes “complex.”

Songwriters dislike being pigeon-holed by their most popular (and often uncharacteristic) work. When I listen to Elaine’s albums, it’s hard not to jump straight to my favorite of her experiments: turning the ad copy for Amarelli Licorice into a madrigal for eight voices.

Those who’d like to stretch their listening beyond 3-chord pop and country should spend some time at Elaine DiMasi’s FAWM profile. It’ll do your ears some good.