Fresno Famous

As a musician, Kat Jones is totally the girl next door, the one you had a crush on, who moved away to college and, sadly, you only see now when she comes home for holidays.

Jones, a fixture in the Fresno music scene, left town for Nashville last year, but makes it a point of stopping through anytime she's touring the West Coast.

She plays 7:30 p.m., tommorrow at Kuppajoe with The Nancy's, Montgomery Hill and Secret Stollen. The show costs $6.

Famous gets the lowdown on how Kat's been spending her time in Nashville.

Listening to: "The Information" — Beck. I just found this in the CD bin for cheap and was pretty excited about it. It's pretty amazing and I felt like a giddy little girl when I saw the stickers inside. I'm still debating on whether or not to actually use them or let them get crusty and old.

"Almost Here" — Unbelievable Truth. This is Andy Yorke's band (brother to Thom Yorke of Radiohead). I have to say it's my all time favorite album. I've listened to it at least once a month for the last 10 years. It's strange to feel that dedicated to a band.

"Thriller" — Michael Jackson. So weird to listen to this record again after 10 years (at least) of not touching it (M.J. was my first crush). It sounds so dated now... and dumb me, I bought the "Special Edition," so "Billie Jean's," not even on it. Who re-releases a record and doesn't put one of the biggest hits on there?! I feel so used.

The radio here is also shockingly good, when one figures out what's out there. I can listen to the Grand Ole Opry on an almost nightly basis (which surprisingly is very cool.) They have an old-timey guy who does call-and-response type announcements and he always refers to the women as "Little Lady." Amazing bluegrass music. Increadible interviews by people like George Jones. Really really cool stuff to listen to. I love it. Also... I am a "Coast to Coast" addict. I love hearing about vampires and monsters, ghosts, space ships, and general consipiracty theory craziness. Sooo good.

Reading: "Teaching a Stone To Talk," by Annie Dillard. She's an amazing author and has a style much like Madeline L'Engle (who officially became my favorite author this year). Very imaginative, lots of textures. I've been falling in love with words again recently. I've really been focused on staying firmly attatched to my childhood since my father died. So I've been reading a lot of children's books and going out to fly kites, be a kid in general.

Watching: "Lost". I'm an adict. Yeah ... sad.

Checking out on the Web: When I moved to Nashville I figured I wasn't going to have any friends for a while and needed to pick up a hobby during the transition. So I started crafting. I make monsters now, and purses, and pin cushions, and I sew CD sleves — It's crazy. So I've really been getting into a Web site called Craftster.org. I really love it. The community there is very art oriented and very fun. Super experimental with traditional mediums and non-tradtional ones. So, I'm learning how to crochet unicorns into my denim jacket. So much fun.

Wearing: I just bought a new navy blue cotton dress from H&M this weekend. I think it's my new favorite basic. And my white mary janes from Payless. I'm such a girl. Sheesh.

Drinking: I am totally addicted to Stumptown Coffee from Portland. Every time I'm there I load up on pounds and pounds of the stuff. We officially have a budget for it in my house in Nashville. My roomates love me for making them thick and delicious coffee. I do miss the Revue though ... awe friends.