Artist of the Week: David Berkeley

It's hard to keep track of all the great music coming out these days. How does an artist truly stand out from the crowd? Sometimes it's a quirky viral video or their mysterious Twitter ramblings. In David Berkeley's case, it was his song featured on CBS show, "Without A Trace."

It's remarkable how a song could be so fitting within the plot of a television drama. For Berkeley, his song "Fire Sign" was used at the climax of the show, when a young boy whose life was made a living hell at school decides to commit suicide. The cops rush to his rescue as Berkeley's song is playing softly in the background. Watch a clip of the episode featuring "Fire Sign" here.

His delicate fingerpicking and gentle vocals throughout this track embodies most of his music. Each song has a telling tale, sometimes sung over light horn features (see "The Blood and the Wine" on MySpace) or simply accompanied by acoustic guitar. While comparisons allude to that of David Gray and Jack Johnson, it's his emotional and honest lyrics that leave the biggest impression on the listener.

Currently on tour with UK sensation Katie Melua, Berkeley is bringing his music across the country in anticipation of his May 26th release of third studio album, Strange Light. Listen to "Willis Avenue Bridge," one of the tracks off his upcoming album here.

For more on his tour and to listen to some tracks, be sure to visit Berkeley on MySpace.