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Spring Music Guide 2003 Avril Lavigne Support: Gob, Simple Plan Date: April 30, 7:30pm. $25-$35. HP Pavilion, 525 W. Santa Clara St., San Jose. 408.287.7070 Current Album: Let Go (Arista, 2002) Vitals: She's young, she's girlish, she's naive, and her pop rocks hard enough for most people to forgive her mispronunciation of David Bowie's name. Blame Canada. Breakthrough: "Complicated" (2002) Current Single: "I'm With You" (2003) Scouting Report: Equally tough and vulnerable, Avril Lavigne has more in common with fellow Canadian rocker Alanis Morissette than just geography and an unusual first name. Much like Morissette, Lavigne seems refreshingly human. This 18-year-old supergirl with the skate-punk vibe took the world by storm with her debut album, Let Go. She may look and act young, but Lavigne doesn't sound young. She has a big, pretty voice that she shows off every chance she gets. She also sings about her teenage feelings in an open, honest way that fans connect with. Lavigne comes across as a real girl's girl--a cool tomboyish chick with a spunky attitude and an independent spirit. Much as Gwen Stefani's bindhi and belly-baring tops broke and reset fashion trends, Lavigne's style has spread like a virus as fans don sweatbands and spikes, imitate the wifebeater/necktie look and scramble to find T-shirts with the same logos she sports. Let Go has already yielded the inescapably infectious "Sk8er Boi," the frustrated "Complicated" and the desperate "I'm With You." She was nominated for five Grammy awards and struck out all five times. Now she embarks on her first headlining run, hitting the arenas on her Try to Shut Me Up tour. (SQ) Send a letter to the editor about this story to letters@metronews.com. [ Silicon Valley | Metroactive Home | Archives ]