Singer-songwriter Justin Townes Earle.

Americana singer-songwriter Justin Townes Earle performs at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 5, in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St.

Honored as the Best New and Emerging Artist at the 2009 Americana Music Awards, Earle performs a solo acoustic concert. Opening for him, also performing solo and acoustically, is the eclectic singer-songwriter Tristen.

Advance tickets are $20, increasing to $25 on the day of the show. To reserve tickets, please visit www.batestickets.com. For more information, please contact 207-786-6135 or olinarts@bates.edu.

“It seems every time we encounter Justin Townes Earle live, the guy has peeled another layer off himself revealing another astounding bit of his promise,” wrote the Houston Press.

Son of rock-country singer-songwriter Steve Earle, Justin was raised in a world of folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, and rock ‘n’ roll. “He’s fully absorbed his genetic and cultural heritage and draws upon both with great skill and dimension,” said a Los Angele Times reporter.

His is “an utterly distinctive voice that takes what’s come before and artfully moves it forward.”
Since his debut in 2008, Earle has toured relentlessly, including performances at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Fest, the Grand Ole Opry and the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, as well as a recent appearance on A Prairie Home Companion.

Earle’s recording Midnight at the Movies (Bloodshot Records, 2009) was named Amazon’s No. 8 country album of 2009 and received four stars in Rolling Stone Magazine. Last year’s Harlem River Blues (Bloodshot) was nominated for Album of the Year by the Americana Music Association, and the title song was named Song of the Year.

Singer-songwriter Tristen.

Nashville-based singer-songwriter Tristen calls herself a pop traditionalist, and claims influences as diverse as Jewel, Loretta Lynn, Bob Dylan and Madonna. In 2011 she went on tour to promote her debut album, Charlatans at the Garden Gate on her own record label, American Myth.

Spin Magazine described Charlatans as “hooky guitar pop that blends country, rockabilly, rock ‘n’ roll, girl group sounds and introspective balladry — the result of Tristen’s expansive study of pop music. And, just like the LP, her live shows are rollicking and sharp.”