Seriously? Everything ranging from Carmen (yes, the opera) to Led Zeppelin. From Justin Timberlake to Carla Bruni. Music is influential and fascinating in all it's forms and time periods and I love them all dearly.
"Musician whose passionate music, songwriting, and fantastic voice has led to a popular rising in the Seattle music scene." -- Mukilteo Beacon, September 2008
Mona Sterling is an alternative rock singer-songwriter, compared to women like Melissa Etheridge, Dolores O'Riordan (The Cranberries), and Johnette Napolitano (Concrete Blonde). With her signature they-can-hear-me-across-the-street voice and percussive guitar style, Mona's songs are a modern-day storybook of love, life, death, and Mustangs.
Mona is currently touring the greater Seattle area in support of her "Something Sweet" single, self-released in spring 2008. Playing in venues from intimate listening rooms to big festival fields, Mona wins over audiences with her room-stopping vocals and self-deprecating banter. Past shows include Mukilteo's Bluegrass and Folk Festival, West Seattle's Skylark Cafe & Club, Bainbridge Island's Pegasus Coffeehouse, and Seattle's Mainstage Music Club, 5th Avenue Tavern, and Cafe Allegro.
For her forthcoming full-length album, Mona is recording with producer Kevin Suggs, known for his work with luminary artists like Cat Power and The Walkabouts. Featuring a cast of players from local indie rock and americana bands, Mona's debut album will come complete with throwback guitar solos, weepy piano, and sweeping crescendos.
A Seattle native, Mona has played in bands all her life -- sometimes on guitar, sometimes on piano, always in black boots, always singing. "I wrote my first song when I was five," Mona says. "I sang at the dinner table, which inspired the 'no singing at the dinner table' rule." In 2007, Mona launched her solo project to make good on a lifelong dream. She cites influences from Led Zeppelin and Justin Timberlake to Carmen and Carla Bruni.
Now backed by Cornish-trained Cameron Boyd on guitar and harmonies, Mona is bringing what the Mukilteo Beacon calls her "voice that soothes with the soulful sounds of a truly gifted musician" to the northwest and beyond.
"A great talent." -- Aury Moore, Mainstage Music Club, August 2008