It’s March 28, 2004 and just like she’s done so many times before, Vivion Smith has nearly completed a day of rock climbing.  Except this time something happens and several days later, she awakes in Innova Fairfax Hospital.  You see, Smith fell that day and suffered multiple skull fractures, a brain contusion and a broken wrist.  She nearly didn’t survive the fall.  At the time, Smith and her band mates in Juniper Lane were the talk of DC and were in discussions with several major record labels about signing a record deal.  The buzz was that it was only a matter of time. They had been voted Washingtonian Magazines 2003 Band of the Year and had performed at the HFStival that same year.  But, with the accident, it began a trying time not only for Smith who had fought for her life to survive the fall, but also her band mates, Eddie Pasa, Chris Bonavia and Brian Frederick.

Now fast forward to today, where Smith is fully recovered and Juniper Lane is working on their third CD.  I meet Smith at a Waldorf Sushi Restaurant because she is a big sushi fan and has graciously offered to show me the finer points of sushi dining.  Dressed in a lovely outfit of black pinstripe pants, maroon top and the requisite shades, she looks fabulous.. But this young lady isn’t just beautiful, she also has the pipes to go with it and her band is a solid group of musicians and entertainers. .  Their first 2 CD’s, Tightrope and Sirens From A Mile Back garnered critical acclaim. They have only played a handful of shows in the past 2 years allowing Smith to continue her recovery and allowing the band to set their strategy for reaching their goal of being a major player in the music industry..  The band feels like they’ve gotten a second chance, feeling energized and they are poised to reclaim their spot as one of the better original bands in the area, and as Smith said “We want to surpass that point where we were before the accident and regain our momentum”.  Juniper Lanes music style resembles a mix of Coldplay, U2, Deathcab For Cutie and Depeche Mode.

The band is recording their latest CD in North Carolina with Producer Ted Comerford the last few months and the band is clearly excited about the album.  “We’ve grown a lot and the songs reflect that.  We’ve still got the familiar Juniper Lane sound, but the songs are more interesting, the emotional songs are more emotional, meaning we’re able to capture emotions better and we kind of figured ourselves out.” says Smith.  Smith writes the lyrics and the band collaborates on the music for the songs. Smith jokes about how sometimes Bonavia will say that a certain lyric doesn’t work and she then changes it. Smith says that some of the songs on the new CD are autobiographical.

Juniper Lane is excited to be playing back in Southern Maryland where they have a nice fan base from their days playing at Harbor Sounds in Solomons.  So if you want to this band who is ready to go for the big time again and if you want to be captivated by the mesmerizing voice of Vivion Smith, then you should catch their show at Neptunes Beach Club in California, Md. this Saturday, April 29, 2006.

For more info on this modern rock band visit their website at www.juniperlane.com