b. Alela Diane Menig, 20 April 1983, Nevada City, California, USA. A respected artist on the so-called "freak folk" scene of the mid-00s, this US singer-songwriter and guitarist gained her reputation with a series of self-released albums and compilation appearances. Menig was raised in a musical family and was encouraged to sing from an early age by her parents. After graduation she concentrated on her songwriting, honing a style based around her acid-folk guitar runs and countrified vocals. Her first recordings were completed with the help of her father at his home studio and were released in 2003 and 2004 on the self-distributed Forest and The Pirate's Gospel CD-Rs. The homespun nature of the recordings was given added appeal by the beautiful, hand-designed paper and lace album covers.
Diane was encouraged to perform her songs live by fellow Nevada City resident Joanna Newsom, an artist whose own take on the burgeoning freak folk style had established her as a successful cult performer. The attendant publicity prompted the reissue of The Pirate's Gospel on the Holocene Music label in 2006, with a heavily revised track listing and a new track, "Can You Blame The Sky?" The limited edition 10-inch vinyl album Songs Whistled Through White Teeth followed later in the year on the UK-based Names Records label (Names also re-released The Pirate's Gospel with new artwork).
