UNCORKED/Brandi Carlile's not quite what she seems

Editor's Note: In the original version of this article, two paragraphs about Brandi's views on faith, women and divorce were taken out of context and did not properly represent her beliefs. We apologize for the error.

BRANDI CARLILE makes for a fascinating study in contradictions.

For starters, there's that amazingly pliant singing voice, with a lower range that can burn through carbon steel and a yodely sweet upper register that could charm the angels.

Carlile hails from grunge territory - a suburb of Seattle. But she sings and even speaks with a decided country twang. And actually has her biggest and most vociferous following right here in Philly - where she returns to headline at the Merriam Theater on Friday night.

When I suggested that many local followers (lured in by early support from WXPN) are rockers and folkies who normally don't listen to country, Carlile joked, "I hope so.

"The country thing started creeping in when I was maybe 8, started listening to and singing along with Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline and Tammy Wynette," Carlile shared in a recent chat, cheerful despite her lingering cold.

Nor did it hurt that mom, Teresa Carlile, is also a country- minded singer - who hauled little Brandi up on stage for duets of "Stand By Your Man."

"We lived in a rural zone outside Seattle where people raise chickens, drive around in pickup trucks and go fishing - something I still like to do," Carlile continued. "For me, country isn't a geographic zone. It's a state of mind and being."

Ready for more Brandi Carlile contradictions?

She's the totally modern, totally cool indie chick - scoring millions of hits on YouTube (almost 9 million just for her signature hit, "The Story") and contributing talent, tunes and dough to many a righteous cause-oriented project.

But Carlile also is a major label (Columbia) artist. In some hipster quarters, that's considered consorting with the devil.

And she's been thrilled that the hugely successful ABC series "Grey's Anatomy" used a bunch of her highly emotional songs to set a scenic tone.

Nor did Carlile throw a monkey wrench when GM pitched to use her touching "I Was Made for You" for a 2008 commercial that played throughout the summer Olympics. Carlile was won over "because the spot was promoting their most environmentally friendly cars."

Carlile acknowledges the potential for both good and bad in a major label contract. The record companies often push artists into a stylistic corner, then quickly lose faith if the typecasting doesn't pay off.

But Columbia has kept the faith and let Carlile do the driving, though she sometimes steers all over the musical highway and has yet to hit the gold mine with any of her five albums.

The label even footed a major bill last year for her "extremely pricey" concert-album project, "Live at Benaroya Hall with the Seattle Symphony," which boasted dramatic string arrangements by Paul Buckmaster. He's best known for his work with Elton John, another artist of influence on - and now friend of - Carlile.

And with the label's support, there was no way viewers could ignore Carlile's first-out-of-the-gate performance of "Folsom Prison Blues" (long a concert staple) on the Columbia-backed tribute concert "We Walk the Line: A Celebration of the Music of Johnny Cash," which played often this summer as a PBS fundraiser and also is available on DVD.

Columbia stands by their girl "because they know me and the twins" - her longtime group-writing and -performing partners, Tim and Phil Hanseroth - "always work extra hard to deliver the goods and are ready to hit the streets when a new album pops."

Now it finally looks like that cooperative strategy is paying off. Released in June, Carlile's latest album, "Bear Creek," cracked the Billboard top-10 album list. Arguably her best work to date, with gems like the ultra-personal gospel-pop plea for forgiveness "That Wasn't Me," tremulous rocker "100," heartening power-ballad promise "I'll Still Be There," Dolly Parton/"Jolene"-styled holler "Raise Hell" and countrypolitan-toned "Heart Content," the "Bear Creek" album also landed at No. 1 on folk charts. But, for Carlile, truthfully, that's like shooting carp in a barrel.

Oh, and there's yet another contradiction about Brandi Carlile. Cute as a button, she's attracted many a male admirer (present company included) who'd love to take the girl fishing. We also found plenty of macho panting about Carlile's "tomboyish personality" in a profile posted on askmen.com.

But the same month that "Bear Creek" came out, Carlile announced her engagement to Catherine Shepherd. The couple made it official on Sept. 15, with a marriage ceremony in Boston.

"I've always been super-gay," Carlile shared, with a laugh. "Can't you tell from my voice?"

While getting married "felt like breaking the law," the media treated Brandi's blessed event in a nonplussed matter-of-fact fashion, she acknowledged. Quite the sea change from the time, not so long ago, when Melissa Etheridge boldly came out, took all kinds of comedic grief from shock jocks and arguably suffered a major career setback.

"I'm incredibly grateful for all the pioneers who came before me, who took the heat for me," Carlile shared.