30 Days Out, Jan. 2024 #2: Angela Easterling, Alice Cooper, Al Stewart, Hub New Music
A typically eclectic assortment of music highlights the remainder of January and the first half of February here in Western North Carolina. Here we go!
Artist: Angela Easterling
Venue: Highland Brewing
Date: Frday, Jan. 17, 6 p.m.
Door: $free
Based in Upstate South Carolina, Angela Easterling began her recording career with the aptly-titled 2007 album Earning Her Wings. Her fifth album, 2015’s Common Law Wife soared to the top spot on the Roots Music Report’s Americana country album chart. Easterling has earned high-profile spots onstage at the Americana Festival in Nashville and the CMA Music Festival; she has toured extensively across the South and Mid Atlantic U.S., with dates as far away as Southern California. As it happens, I interviewed her almost exactly one year ago.
Artist: Alice Cooper
Venue: Harrah’s Casino
Date: Saturday, Feb. 1, 7:30 p.m.
Door: $63.45
Forget all these (relatively) modern-day upstarts; Alice Cooper is truly The Grand Old Man of Shock Rock. I saw him a few years back, and while his vice is pretty much what it’s always been, that’s not why you go see him in concert. His show is every bit as entertaining as ever, and his band rocks. I’ve interviewed him a couple of times and have reviewed quite a few of his releases; click here for all-o-that.
Artist: Al Stewart
Venue: Wortham Center
Date: Saturday, Feb. 1, 7 p.m.
Door: $53.99
Sure, you know him for “Year of the Cat,” “Time Passages” and other supremely tuneful ‘70s FM radio classics. But Stewart is about more than that; he’s unique among singer-songwriters for his literate, history-immersed work. The man knows a lot about world history, and it informs much of his music. His overlooked pre-major-success album Past, Present and Future is a particular standout, and my upcoming book on concept albums (What’s the Big Idea) explores it in detail, based on an interview with the man himself.
Artist: Hub New Music
Venue: BMCM+AC
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 12, 7 p.m.
Door: $15
With similarities to Germany’s famed Bauhaus art school, Black Mountain College was a remarkable institution; educators and students included Buckminster Fuller, John Cage and Willem de Kooning. The school closed its doors in 1957, but a museum in Asheville helps preserve its legacy. And the Black Mountain College Museum and Arts Center (catchy BMCM+AC for shortish) carries on the tradition by hosting truly fascinating events and concerts. Detroit-based Hub New Music is the latest; the quartet is modern classical (think Kronos Quartet) that’s cerebral and thought-provoking…and entertaining.
See you at the show!
About the Author
Bill Kopp
With a background in marketing and advertising, Bill Kopp got his professional start writing for Trouser Press. After a stint as Editor-in-chief for a national music magazine, Bill launched Musoscribe in 2009, and has published new content every business day since then (and every single day for several years). The more than 5000 interviews, essays, and reviews on Musoscribe reflect Bill's keen interest in American musical forms, most notably rock, jazz, and soul. His work features a special emphasis on reissues and vinyl. Bill's work also appears in many other outlets both online and in print. He regularly hosts lecture/discussions on artists and albums of historical importance (including monthly events Music to Your Ears and Music Movie Mondays), and is a frequent guest on music-focused radio programs and podcasts. In Spring 2023 he taught a history of Rock 'n' Roll at UNC Asheville's College for Seniors. He also researches and authors liner notes for album reissues -- some 40 to date -- and co-produced a reissue of jazz legend Julian "Cannonball" Adderley's final album. His first book, Reinventing Pink Floyd: From Syd Barrett to The Dark Side of the Moon was published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2018, and in paperback in 2019. His second book, Disturbing the Peace: 415 Records and the Rise of New Wave, was published in 2021 by HoZac Books. His third book, What's the Big Idea: 30 Great Concept Albums is available now. Read even more about him here.