“I want people to have an ‘altered time’ kind of experience that happens in the theater or a really good movie — the kind where you can forget about what’s

going on with you and travel like you’re dreaming.” For singer/songwriter Jana Losey and her co-writer/producer Melanie Peters, it’s not just the live performances that have felt dreamlike in recent days. After touring cross-country and moving back to her hometown of Lawrenceville, PA (population 600), Jana and Melanie recorded the labor of love called “Blocks” mostly in the house where Jana grew up.

“Some people have children, and that makes them feel a slice of immortality,” explains Losey. “I have my music to leave behind – my songs are my children, my slice of immortality.”

Though some of the stories in the songs deal with darkness and loneliness, they are often balanced by bright melodies and driving rhythms. On first listen, “5 Days” might sound like an upbeat pop song. But the origin of the song was a newspaper story about a woman who fell and remained on the floor for three days before anyone found her. “I was sickly fascinated with what it must be like to be lying on the floor in various states of consciousness for that long.”

It’s those juxtapositions of dark and light that reward repeated listenings with subtle shades of meaning. Whereas some musicians might be content to conjure songs with memorable melodies, Jana Losey is the kind of thoughtful writer and charismatic performer who wants to take her audience deeper and create moments that stay with them a little longer after they’ve turned off the record or left the concert.

Where did the vision and ambition begin to take root? If every musical path can be traced back to its first few baby steps, you could follow Jana’s back to when she was three.

“Everywhere I went I carried around a small suitcase record player, a jump rope, and a couple 45s. When I found a wiling audience, I would ‘plug’ the jump rope ‘into’ the record player and sing ‘Sugar Sugar’ by The Archies”

Losey’s exposure to pop culture was limited by the size of her hometown. Losey says. “I think it’s great that kids start bands so young now. They have so much more access to music and the world. I was pretty sheltered, and there was some good to that. But I do wish I had started things earlier.”

Losey managed to expand her range of musical skills and performing opportunities in a way that might have eluded a pigeonholed prodigy. As a result, she learned how to play guitar, piano, flute and tenor saxophone. In college, she studied voice, and minored in photography and dance.

Those unexpected combinations were first explored on her 2006 debut “Bittersweet” and subsequent tour. That record, the result of a serendipitous collaboration with partner Melanie Peters, earned a good deal of radio airplay which translated into a devoted following of fans.

“When Melanie and I started to explore writing together, the songs got good really fast,” Losey reflects. The success of the “Bittersweet” album encouraged her to begin thinking about how to construct a long-term, sustainable career in music. As a result, she began to take a big-picture view of her life in general and how she could sow the seeds for a long career, and eventually create a permaculture community. That direction inspired her to make changes that affect many aspects of her life on the road.

In the past year, organic evolution has been evident in Losey’s songwriting process as well. Whereas, “Bittersweet” was an experiment in writing pop songs that originally were intended to be sold to other artists, Losey describes her new record “Blocks” as a project that was conceived and structured as an album from the beginning. During the development of “Blocks” Losey’s primary goal was to focus on her storytelling.

“I want to not force-feed people an oversimplified lyric, and at the same time, not be so esoteric that my intention is not clear. I always strive to be a better songwriter and I hope the albums played back to back will illustrate that.”

“I’m working really hard to make a fan base that is lasting, not following trends,” says Losey. “People who will like the artistic changes I will no doubt go through. We plan to be bi-coastal traveling back and forth between upstate New York and California.”

You can find more information regarding Jana Losey at her MySpace space and her website www.janalosey.com.

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