Customer Reviews

BlackTop Road

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Easterling's 2009 release, BlackTop Road shows obvoius growth since her intial 2006 release, Earning Her Wings. The songwriting on BlackTop Roadis consistently stronger and her singing shows maturity and confidence of a established performer who knows what she wants to say and goes directly to the heart of the matter without beating around the bush.

Will Kimbrough's masterful hand (and ear) are evident in the production and it's obvious both Will and Angela pulled out all the stops on this project. Album design and artwork are also to be commended.

Title track, Blacktop Road, demonstrates that she's singing about something which touches her directly and deeply. This is HER grandfather she's singing about and it shows in her delivery. The track has strong hooks which keep the song in your head long after the cd stops spinning. Lead track, American Id also shows the grit and spunk and is a good choice to grab the listeners attention from the "get go".

Angela is at her best when she's in your face both lyrically and vocally, demanding your attention. This isn't background music for conversation or drinkin....this is honky-tonk music which commands your attention from start to finish. It reminds you of the time when country wasn't watered down with cross-over pablum and when Friday and Saturday nights meant a trip to the local honky-tonk to blow off steam from a long week; a time when your local jukebox was a treasured friend. The spirit of a honky-tonk jukebox just doesn't fit into a mp3 player smaller than a Zippo lighter. But that spirit still lives in Blacktop Road.

Listening to this CD it's easy to find yourself envisioning Angela sharing the stage with honky-tonk heroes like Loretta, Wanda J, Billy Joe, and Dwight.

Old-School Country and Americana is on the rise and Angela Easterling has the potential to go far in this genre. I'm not surprised to see that this release has immediately appeared on the Americana Airplay charts for new adds and it'll be interesting to watch both BlackTop Road and Angela Easterling continue to climb.

I stumbled onto Angela through the No Depression alt-country/Americana web community several months ago and was struck not only by her incredible voice, but also the way she presents her music and connects with fans. She is one of a new breed of performer that has embraced technology in a way that brings her closer to her audience as opposed to isolating them. Basically a one woman show, she's often on the road performing while staying connected via her website and Facebook. She shares her life story, her daily ups and downs, her passions and frustrations,and by doing so her music becomes a living and breathing entity rather than just a soundtrack. In getting to know her, I found myself eagerly awaiting Blacktop Road's release. She sent fans a free mp3 of "Better" a couple of months ago to whet our appetite and it sure did the trick. It has become my favorite song of the moment and when I downloaded the album last night I wasn't surprised to discover that every track is a killer. The editorial from Twang Nation posted above says it more eloquently than I can, but in a nutshell Angela has a true gift that we don't often find in a performer. As a true DIY'er in the modern age of the new music industry, you won't necessarily find her album in your local record store...that is if you still have a local record store. You'll hear it on Americana radio, at her shows and you can buy it right here/right now. I would suggest that it would be a wise decision to do so.

Ever since I first saw Angela play at the Birchmere in Alexandria and picked up her first album, Earning Her Wings,it has been a staple of my listening diet. I just recently received Blacktop Road. I wasn't sure it would live up to EHW, but after a first listen I knew I was proven wrong. Every song was overflowing with emotion. AP Carter's blues sent chills down my spine! I loved American ID when I first read the lyrics in her blog and was real happy to see her include it on the album. As for Blacktop Road - loved the vocals, but the music wasn't angry enough, haha, though I have to admit it would have been weird to hear an angry metal song on a folk/country album :) My uncle had to sell what was left of the family property because all the Mcmansions and high income Gov't officials in the county drove his taxes too high. So I know where she's coming from. Strong musicianship, strong songwriting, and gorgeous vocals make this album a must have for any country music or singer-songwriter fan.

Angela Easterling speaks from the sweat, toil, heartbreak and joy of family farms and witnessing up close how paradise is paved over for a big-box parking lot; her family began farming in 1791 in Greer, South Carolina, and continue the proud tradition today.

Produced by Will Kimbrough, the dozen songs bounce easily from country, bluegrass, folk and country-alt, with an emphasis on the storytelling. The title track of the July 2009 release is an anthem to the lament of what is gone and on par with Chrissie Hynde's "My City Was Gone." The banjo and fiddle make the lyrics even more powerful on "Field of Sorrow." The past, present and future of a family is explored on "The Picture" and "Big Wide World."

Easterling salutes her great-grandfather by covering a song he penned in the 1940s - "Stars Over The Prairie" - and honors the genius of Neil Young with a cover of his "Helpless." There are warm rays of sunlight after the storm in "Better," "Just Like Flying" and "Birmingham." A particular appreciation to education through history is found on "A.P. Carter's Blues."

She has had success as a regional artist, but this sophomore album shows that she is on the cusp of breaking out on the national scene. Hard work and patience.....Easterling knows them very well.

Black Top Road was my introduction to Angela Easterling and her music. It is a whole new world out there for aspiring singers and songwriters, a world in which they carry most of the burden for getting the word out about themselves, their bands, and the music they produce. Record labels seldom do that kind of thing for new artists anymore, a change that is not necessarily bad considering that there are so many new tools through which to get the job done - and who cares more about marketing than the artist responsible for the music? Easterling is one of the smart ones; she is definitely getting the job done and word about her music is spreading fast.

When I think of the Americana genre, I imagine something like Black Top Road, a mixture of several musical styles, a conglomerate of folk, country, blues, rock, and even the "western" that has disappeared from what some still call "country and western" (a brilliant little song called "Stars Over the Prairie"). Easterling covers them all, and she covers them well.

My Black Top Road favorites are the ballads because Easterling's emotional vocal style shines brightest on that type of song. One of those, "The Picture," is a particularly haunting take on the despair felt by a daughter who discovers a picture in the personal effects left behind by her father that makes her question just who her father really was and whether she ever really knew him. Despite how sad this one is, it is the song that I keep returning to for an extra spin or two each time I listen to the album. Other balled standouts include "Helpless" and "Field of Sorrow."

Black Top Road is a very personal album for Angela Easterling, an album for which she wrote most of the songs, none of them more poignant than the title song in which she revisits the agony of having to sell off one-third of a farm that has been in her family since 1791 simply to pay the inheritance tax that came due at the passing of her grandfather. Easterling is justifiably worried about what will happen to the farm the next time it moves from one generation to another. Someone should send a copy of "Black Top Road" to every member of Congress before more family farms have to be broken up to satisfy the tax man.

Angela Easterling has defied any sophomore jinx that may be associated with recorded music. Listeners will find a lot to like in Black Top Road because she has no fear about expressing honest emotion and sentiment - and she has the voice and delivery to do it right. It is still a little early in the year to be picking best albums but, to this point, this is one of my 2009 favorites.

Bottom line, the songs on this album are real. They reflect the pain and emotion of real life in a way that FM radio wants little to do with anymore. Forget FM radio. Do yourself a big favor and grab a copy of Black Top Road instead of twisting the FM dial in frustration. This is a good one.

Strong 2nd CD from Angela, she's only getting better. Don't think Taylor Swift or Carrie Underwood. Angela has much more in common with the great ones. Patty Loveless, Loretta Lynn, Tanya Tucker. Well crafted songs, a few tackle serious issues. "Picture" is a make you think song. "American ID" looks at our country's past and present identity crisis. Another great tribute , this time to A.P. Carter. Romantic themes still abound. The title track is a killer. A hard edged country song about the tragic loss of her family's farm to more powerful forces. And she's gutsy enough to try Neil Young's "Helpless" and pull it off nicely. She's also smart enough to surround herself with a great supporting cast. Will Kimbraugh's production/playing is top notch. And any time your band consists of Will, Anne McCue , Fat's Kaplan and Al Perkins there's going to be some great music made. Angela's voice is spun gold. If you ever get a chance to see her "live" don't pass it up.Her voice is the real deal. Can't recommend this CD ( or her last one )highly enough. Angela writes songs that I know I'll still be coming back to if I live another 50 years. For all fans of real Country music.