Lauren Mayberry steps out of the band Chvrches for a solo album that shows her influences

AP Entertainment Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — The birth of Lauren Mayberry as a solo artist should be marked by something like a wolf cry. And that’s exactly what it sounds like. The vocalist and percussionist from the Scottish pop band Chvrches has punctuated her debut album with a playful howl while telling off an ex-lover on the song “Crocodile Tears.” The 37-year-old Mayberry is enjoying the freedom these days to create whatever she likes, away from the synth-pop of the band she has been with since her early 20s. The 12 tracks of “Vicious Creature” veer from the coffee house folk of “Anywhere But Dancing” to the punky “Punch Drunk.”