Lauren Hoffman (born 1977) is an American singer-songwriter. She released her debut album ''

Megiddo Megiddo may refer to: Places and sites in Israel * Tel Megiddo, site of an ancient city in Israel's Jezreel valley * Megiddo Airport, a domestic airport in Israel * Megiddo church (Israel) * Megiddo, Israel, a kibbutz in Israel * Megiddo Junction, ...

'' through

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

in 1997 to critical praise. In 1999 Hoffman independently issued her second LP ''From The Blue House'' and an EP, ''A Harmless Little Kiss.'' Her third album ''

Choreography Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design ...

'' was released through French record label Fargo Records in 2006 and includes her single "Broken". She released her next album ''Interplanetary Traveler'' in 2010. Between 2015 and 2017, she performed and released music under a new moniker, The Secret Storm, during which she released two EPs and a fourth full-length album ''Family Ghost''. Hoffman's 2019 EP ''Mercury Girls'' was positively reviewed by

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

as a "stunner."

Biography

Hoffman was born in Los Angeles, in 1977. She moved to Charlottesville, Virginia at the age of 2, and started writing songs and playing guitar at 12 years old. She also played bass with

Shannon Worrell Shannon Worrell is a singer-songwriter based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Known for a series of critically acclaimed albums in the 1990s culminating with an appearance (as September 67) on the Lilith Fair tour and for collaborations with fellow ...

and Kristin Asbury in a band called Monsoon, named after the Thai restaurant in which they played. She later left the band to focus on her career. She released her first full-length album ''

'' when she was 19. She parted ways with Virgin Records while taking full rights of the album – as it was poorly promoted, though it was largely recognized in Europe, especially France. Hoffman produced ''Megiddo'' with John Morand and Cracker's David Lowery; the album was mixed by

Ethan Johns Ethan Thomas Robert Johns (born 1969 in Merton, London, England) is an English record producer, engineer, mixer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Johns has worked with artists including Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon, Paul McCartney, Ray LaMo ...

and recorded at the Sound of Music studio in Richmond. Hoffman and

Jeff Buckley Jeffrey Scott Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997), raised as Scott Moorhead, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, Buckley amassed a following in the early 1990s by ...

were friends for four years prior to his death – she called him a "mentor" and a "muse." Hoffman produced her second album ''From The Blue House,'' released in Europe through PIAS in 1999. The album features "Song For A Boy," a tribute to her friend

. During 2003, Hoffman was in a band called The Lilas, based in Charlottesville. They worked up some of the songs that would appear on her next solo album. Her third album, ''

'', was co-produced with John Morand - who has worked with Hoffman throughout her career, from early demos to ''Interplanetary Traveller'', and as noted above ''

. Choreography'' was released in 2006 through French label Fargo Records. The album contains Hoffman's most successful single, "Broken". Throughout her travel experiences she eventually recorded ''The Lucknow Demos'', which partly inspirited her 2006 album Choreography. Her fourth album ''Interplanetary Traveler'' — which she recorded in Israel, was released in 2010. She released several of her EPs and albums in both Europe and America on 7" and 12" vinyl and CD. 2019 saw the release of her latest album ''Mercury Girls''.

Discography

Albums

* ''

(1997)'' * ''From The Blue House (1999)'' * ''

(2006)'' * ''Interplanetary Traveler (2010)'' * ''Lauren Hoffman & The Secret Storm: Family Ghost (2017)'' *''Mercury Girls (2019)''

Singles & EPs

* ''Fall Away (1996) 7" Vinyl'' * ''The Chemist Said It Would Be Alright But I’ve Never Been The Same (1997)'' * ''Rock Star (1997) 12" Vinyl'' * ''Lolita (1997) 12" Vinyl'' * ''A Harmless Little Kiss (1999)'' * ''Song For A Boy (2000) 7" Vinyl'' * ''Solipsist (2006) Single'' * ''The Secret Storm: In The Sun (2015)'' * ''The Secret Storm: The Dragon (2015)'' * ''Lauren Hoffman & The Secret Storm: A Friend for the Apocalypse (2017) Single'' * ''Shadow of the Moon (2018) Single'' * ''Heartbreak and Tacos (2019) Single'' * ''The Chemical (2019) Single'' * ''The Chemical andemic Remix(2020) Single''

''Hallmark Releases''

* ''The Lucknow Demos (2003) vailable to public 2018' * ''Megiddo – 20th Anniversary All-Analog Vinyl Reissue (2018)''

Arts and Filmography

After her album ''

''was released in 1997, Hoffman spent some time traveling India, Europe and Israel to tour and forego her musical endeavour. She later studied the art of dance and choreography at Virginia Commonwealth University. In 2002 she decided to move forward from the study of dance to pursue her passion of music, while also incorporating her talent as a dancer. With her fellow peers, Hoffman went on to produce several musical and dance video productions for some of her songs, including ''Solipsist'' and ''Another Song About the Darkness —

(2006).'' The album cover for her EP ''The Chemist Said It Would Be Alright But I’ve Never Been The Same,'' was designed by

outsider artist Outsider art is art made by self-taught or supposedly naïve artists with typically little or no contact with the conventions of the art worlds. In many cases, their work is discovered only after their deaths. Often, outsider art illustrates ...

Wes Freed Wes Freed (April 25, 1964 – September 4, 2022) was an American outsider artist. His works appeared on album covers of Lauren Hoffman and numerous American rock bands, including Cracker and the Drive-By Truckers. Early life Freed was ...

. ''Another Song About the Darkness'', from her album ''Choreography'', is included on

The Sound the Hare Heard ''The Sound the Hare Heard'' is a 2006 compilation of mostly acoustic arrangements by a number of singer-songwriters, both well-known and relatively obscure. Kill Rock Stars founder Slim Moon was the driving force behind the album, but not all o ...

album. Five of Hoffman's songs from ''Choreography'' were played throughout the groundbreaking LGBT series

South of Nowhere ''South of Nowhere'' is an American teen drama television series created by Thomas W. Lynch. It first aired on November 4, 2005, on Noggin (brand), Noggin as part of its teen programming block, The N. The show was produced by Noggin LLC in assoc ...

: ''Ghost You Know'', ''Magic Stick'', ''Hope You Don't Mind'', ''Reasons to Fall'', and ''Broken''. Her song ''Rock Star'' appears on the soundtrack of the 1998 motion picture, '' Palmetto''.

References

External links

Lauren Hoffman Official Website

Lauren Hoffman's Official Bandcamp
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffman, Lauren 1977 births Living people American folk singers 21st-century American singers