The new album is a follow-up to Short Stories, her 2006 release. Thankfully, fans won't have to wait the six years they did between Rhaye's self-titled debut and Short Stories.

"I don't want to spend as much time making this record as I did making Short Stories, that one was four years in the making," Rhaye said last week. "The songs are there, it's just a matter of getting them recorded now."

The new record, scheduled for release in the fall, are more folk-leaning than Short Stories, she says. Several of the songs are actually tunes that didn't make her 2006 album.

The stripped-down approach to the new record comes from Rhaye performing many shows in simple voice/acoustic guitar format live. Short Stories, while not overproduced, did have a bit of a pop sheen over it and this time around she wants to release something that is more in tune with her acoustic performances.

In addition to the tune she wrote with Sexsmith (writing with the famous songwriter while he was touring New Brunswick was quite the treat, she says), Rhaye plans to record a cover of the Rolling Stones "Wild Horses", a tune that she has been performing live for the last couple of years. The song has always gone over well live and fans have requested a recorded version they could buy, so Rhaye is giving it to them.

Recently, Rhaye was awarded not for her music, but for her graphic design work at the East Coast Music Awards in Fredericton. While Short Stories was nominated for Female Solo Recording of the Year, it was her design work that netted her Graphic Designer of the Year at the ECMAs. "I'm always excited to be recognized for my music, but I was really excited, almost more excited, to be recognized for my design work," she says. "It's just something that I never thought... it's your everyday job that you never think you're going to get recognized for."

You can check out Rhaye's music at www.JessicaRhaye.com.

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Opening the show for Rhaye is Moncton pop musician Zwerg (a.k.a. Eldon Thiele, Jason Betts). Zwerg, who released his latest album Into The 4th Dimension last year, is currently working on a follow-up at the Atlantica Centre for the Arts in Saint John. Inspired by traditional New Brunswick folk music, Zwerg says the double-album will consist of one disc of original songs and one disc of local folksongs and hits. Check out Zwerg at www.zwerg.ca.