New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Rock Ridge Music) Singer-songwriter Stewart Eastham is set to release his debut solo album, The Man I Once Was, on
September 24, 2013 via Long Bar Music. Eastham's first record since fronting country-rock band Day of the Outlaw captures some of his most honest and personal lyricism to date, especially moments like "Idyllwild, CA," "Crawl Up In Your Bottle," "It's Understood," and "The
Lights of Tennessee." Since The Man I Once Was is so deeply rooted in his own first-hand experience, the songs often take on the feel of a diary spanning an incredibly transformative time in his life.
After a lifetime on the West Coast, Eastham recently found himself at both a personal and artistic crossroads. He found respite from the darkness of his final L.A. years in the change of pace and peace of mind he discovered in Nashville. "It's my 'L.A. to Nashville' album," explains Eastham. "As the song 'Born In California' exemplifies, my life has always been based around a series of dichotomies: city vs. country, intellectualism vs. street smarts, freedom vs. security. With the move to Nashville, that dichotomy became literal, snaking its way through many of my songs as well as determining the album's title and cover art."
For The Man I Once Was, Eastham teamed up with producer (and former bandmate) Burke Ericson. Ironically, he traveled back to Los Angeles to record this album using a group of incredibly talented musicians he'd met during his tenure there, including bassist Ted Russell Kamp and pedal steel player extraordinaire John McClung.
"Through the course of production, Burke ended up building a studio in his house which afforded us the opportunity to really hone the specific sound we wanted for this album," says Eastham. "We talked a lot about the early
Neil Young records where he had big, funky drums over country-tinged songs. Burke has such a great ear and I really trust him. He understands me as a songwriter and always made my ideas better."
Eastham's songs span the breadth of the Americana realm: from the old school country sounds of "The
Lights of Tennessee" and "Livin' With Bad Decisions," to the funky southern rock of "Broken Hearted Lovers" and "Crawl Up In Your Bottle," to the lush, layered arrangements of "It's Understood" and title track "The Man I Once Was." Eastham is both a prolific and poetic writer with a deep love of storytelling, honed not only through music but also via a deep passion for literature and art films (and their less "noble" counterparts: genre fiction and genre movies.)
Eastham was born and raised in the Butte County region of rural Northern California. He grew up on the sounds of classic country, outlaw country, and California country. (Merle Haggard is a constant inspiration.) This was supplemented with a love of rock 'n' roll, as well as appreciation for hip-hop and heavy metal. During his first year at UC Davis, Eastham answered a music store ad place by a satirical thrash metal band looking for a drummer. After graduating with a degree in Computer Engineering, Eastham switched gears and moved to Los Angeles to attend film school. There he developed his skills as a storyteller through writing, directing, and acting in films, while continuing to play music as a drummer. He also became an acolyte of country music—starting back with guys like Hank Sr., Jimmie Rodgers, and Lefty Frizzell, and then working his way up to the country-flavored singer/songwriters of the '70s like John Prine, Townes Van Zandt, Mickey Newbury, and Terry Allen. After playing drums for a few years in the Los Angeles outfit Minibike, the band morphed to the point where Eastham was the frontman. Minibike transformed into Day of the Outlaw, which released two albums: 2009's
Black Mountain Majesty and 2012's The Retribution Waltz.
Eastham plans to tour soon in support of The Man I Once Was.
www.stewarteastham.com
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