Lennon is a headbanger who received a rash of publicity before releasing her debut,
5:30 Saturday Morning (named such because of when she finished writing the tunes). She has opened for stalwarts like
Monster Magnet,
the Cult, and
Alice Cooper in an effort to bring her confessional tirades to the mostly male metal masses. Primarily a vocalist, the young
Lennon also plays guitar and keyboards.
Lennon started writing songs at age seven. Her mom played
Frank Sinatra,
Barry Manilow, and
Aerosmith around the house. At 15, she played her first gig at a dive in her hometown of Hendersonville, Tennessee, and stayed on-stage for three hours. With the exception of
Ani DiFranco, her tastes have run toward the strident macho heaviness of
Korn and
Nine Inch Nails, as evidenced on her first offering. She scrapped the big-name production version of her inaugural slab, opting for her manager and guitarist to perform board duties as they had on her demo.
Lennon's songs are straightforward and personal: "Couldn't Breathe" details small-town claustrophobia, "Trying to Make Me" roasts the marketing executives who imposed image makeovers on her, and "Thank You" laments the passing of her mother, who pushed her to perform. Regarding
Lennon's legendary surname, apparently she hates
the Beatles, although she likes
George Harrison. She went on to release
Career Suicide in 2003 and
Damaged Goods in 2006. ~ Doug Stone