Mary Lambert’s perfected pop music is like the Powerpuff Girls meet Kate Nash (but from Seattle, not London). Her newfound hold on the genre is sugar, spice and a slew of self-growth stories told with quirky lyrics and contagious melodies.
Lambert is perhaps best known for her song “She Keeps Me Warm,” sampled by Macklemore in “Same Love.” She isn’t shy about her sexual preferences; she isn’t shy about anything, actually. In her latest hit “Secrets,” Lambert addresses parts of her identity from being too gay to think straight, to having bipolar disorder, to being overweight — you get the picture.
The multitudes of her identity are elaborately pieced together with her impressively fluid vocals. One verse she’s in opera vibrato, the next she’s letting out a cheeky line in her naturally birdlike voice.
Lambert’s Bold was released in May. The short yet powerful EP encompasses Lambert’s perspective on settling into who she is. She dances through themes that sprout from her past of drug abuse, sexual assault and attempted suicide.
Summing up her latest album in singular terms, the word “garden” comes to mind. A listener can hear her roots while also seeing the fruits she’s grown.
Mary Lambert, with opener Mal Blum, plays 8 pm Saturday, Oct. 28, at the WOW Hall; $18 advance, $20 day-of.