Angela James’ music brings to mind the rich, deep voices of classic country artists like Patsy Cline and Rosanne Cash with the narrative sensibility of more modern female troubadours like Neko Case and Cat Power. With her debut LP Way Down Deep, Angela James has taken her nascent career to the next level of craftsmanship by employing some of Chicago’s finest jazz improv players and incorporating them into a bold sonic tapestry that highlights both her refined ear and wide-ranging influences. Her music speaks to new horizons in progressive Americana in a way that feels both indebted and freed from the strictures of time. Born and raised in Eastern TN, with sojourns in Mississippi and Brazil, Angela James calls Chicago home. "Angela James swills her misery like a pro, exposing its various hues, imploring us to join her in its strange, revelling gratification. She reminds us that there is something uniquely (and usually only briefly) satisfying about indulging in a hard bout of melancholy." Tiny Mix Tapes Angela James sounds wholly alone on the title track of her new full-length, delivering her words atop a low roar that echoes a cold wind sweeping across a graveyard. It’s a rare moment of solitude on a gorgeous record given life by a long list of collaborators, including Justin Brown, whose sighing pedal steel amps up the sorrow on “Drink and Try Not to Cry,” where not even the wine can dull the ache in James’ shattered heart. “Top 10 Chicago Albums of 2014″ Red Eye Chicago/Chicago Tribune