A native of the small rural Oregon town of Coquille, singer/songwriter and classically trained cellist Laura Gibson creates experimental indie folk, anchored by her unique vocals, which veers from delicate to lush. Her third solo studio outing, La Grande, which was named for a Northeastern Oregon town described by Gibson as a place that "people usually pass through on their way to somewhere else, but which contains a certain gravity, a curious energy," arrived in early 2011. Over the next several years, she composed a variety of music for commercials and charitable campaigns like the Cover Oregon Campaign and the Humane Society. She also wrote for regional stage productions and collaborated with the Oregon Ballet Theatre and Portland Playhouse. In 2016, Gibson returned to solo work with Empire Builder, her fourth album release. 2018 saw the release of Gibson's evocative fifth studio long player, Goners, which dealt with grief and accountability.