Ten reasons to listen to Angela Easterling:
1. This is a road trip worth taking.
BlackTop Road, Easterling’s second album (not to be confused with “BlackTop Road,” the single), doesn’t fall conveniently into any one category, embracing roots rock and comfy country while adding elements of pure pop and righteous folk. There are expressions of sadness (“Field of Sorrow”), frustration (a rousing “Big Wide World”) and resentment (“The Picture”). But it also captures what the most endearing moments of a warm family reunion at her longtime South Carolina home might feel like. Eleven of the 13 songs were written by Easterling, yet she reached back into her proud heritage to update her great-grandfather’s “Stars Over the Prairie.” And she also pays her respects to another familial patriarch in "A.P. Carter’s Blues,” where she’s haunted by the spirit of one of country music’s founding fathers after visiting his grave.
2. She’s an all-Americana girl ...
Easterling will be one of the showcase artists at the 2009 Americana Music Festival to be held September 16-19 at five downtown Nashville venues. She’s in pretty good company, too, with Asleep at the Wheel, Cross Canadian Ragweed and Marty Stuart among a long list of performers.
3. ... and Roger McGuinn’s latest “Sweetheart”
The jingle-jangle guitarist and founder of the legendary Byrds made Easterling’s opening song, “American I.D.,” one of his choice cuts on a recent BBC radio show and went on to call her “a bright shining star on the country/folk/alt.music horizon!” and said BlackTop Road (De L’Est Music) “brought me back to the time the Byrds recorded Sweetheart of the Rodeo – tradition meets youthful exuberance!”
4. She sounds like ...
Well, take your pick. Fellow Carolinian (from the North side, though) Tift Merritt would be a good place to start, particularly on the wistful “One Microphone.” After a breakup, “those old happy chords sound so blue,” sings Easterling, who also provides a French version as a bonus track. But Angela's angelic voice on “Better” and the romantic “Birmingham” also bring to mind Nina Gordon, while there’s a hint of feisty Miranda Lambert on the spirited “BlackTop Road.” That’s covering a lot of ground and range.
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