For years now, Sarah Slean's girly-girl vocals and largely piano-based arrangements have belied a lyrical and musical bite that often borders on downright scary.

But whatever you do, don't even think about calling her edgy.

"I hate that word -- edgy," Slean says with a giggle. "It's come to have this weird, alterna-rock connotation ... I do like the word dark. That calls to mind Tim Burton and his ilk, which I think I have a lot more in common with."

No argument here. On Slean's latest, Orphan Music, a collection of 15 old and new tracks recorded in both live and studio settings, the cabaret-friendly chanteuse favours a stripped-down approach. But even with just a standard voice-and-piano set-up, the 29-year-old still manages to dredge up some pretty spooky themes -- when her more heartfelt ballads aren't doing a number on your tearducts.

Orphan Music's live component was recorded at gigs in Toronto and Vancouver during the last leg of the tour she did for her most recent studio album, 2004's Day One.

"I was just kind of ready to put it to bed," she says of Day One. "So it was kind of nice to do the last run solo. I feel like performing that way, it was just about the songs and nothing else. Not the sound levels, not whether the band was a unit, just that very direct relationships between me and the songs and the audience."

And speaking of scary, Slean says she's in a state of "heightened vulnerability" when not backed by a band, though she's quick to describe her piano as "my oldest friend in the universe.

"It's this magical vehicle, the pathway to being able to soar," she says. "Singing is elevated speech, that's why music is so relevant and powerful. And the piano has been the key for me that lets me go into that room with all the power in it."

On Day One, Slean traded in her torch-song tendencies for funky backbeats and lively percussion, though she says the world of rhythm is still elusive to her.

"Perhaps it's because I get so caught up in my love affair with harmonies and melodies," says Slean, whose trip-hoppy take on Comfortably Numb was the high point of an otherwise lacklustre compilation of Pink Floyd covers released recently. "Rhythm is about the body, it's about turning off your mind, which I've never been very good at."

One of the most charming moments on Orphan Music is a sing-songy aside from Slean, where she can be heard chirping, "I love my job, I love my job."

Slean, who counts fellow cabaret-fan (and former producer) Hawksley Workman as a kindred spirit, says the sentiment still holds true.

"I'm in the game," she laughs. "Ante up."

If you want to ante up for tickets to Slean's solo show Monday at the West End, they cost $18 at Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.ca or 780-3333).