In some ways, Voices on the Verge is Four Bitchin' Babes: the Next Generation. Erin McKeown, Jess Klein, Beth Amsel, and Rose Polenzani have all achieved some level of solo success, but this folk-pop collective, in which the four singer/songwriters interpret each other's songs, puts all four in an exciting, partially improvisatory environment that showcases each member's strengths while downplaying their weaknesses. Voices on the Verge began as a one-off show at the Iron Horse, a noted folk club in Northampton, MA, in November 1998. Bostonians Amsel and Klein, Rhode Island-based McKeown, and Chicagoan Polenzani played some other shows in the Northeast and Midwest in 1999 and 2000 and recorded their debut album, Live In Philadelphia, in front of a small audience at Philadelphia's Indre Studios over the course of two nights in early 2001. The album, featuring three songs by each singer/songwriter, was released in October of that year, with a national tour following in early 2002. ~ Stewart Mason