Rin Waigand

Justin Townes Earle

When the child of an established entertainer decides to follow in his or her parent's footsteps, inevitably there is going to be a certain amount of scrutiny.

Sometimes the kids decide to take the easy route, capitalizing on the fact that they are indeed the son or daughter of someone famous, hoping that this alone will lead to a modest amount of success. For Justin Townes Earle, this definitely isn't the case. Although he grew up literally in the musical shadow of his father, Steve Earle, playing in that Americana icon's band, young Justin was never one to take the easy way to fame.

After he developed his father's former penchant for substance abuse, Steve unceremoniously tossed his son out of the band when his behavioral problems started affecting the act. Perhaps that is the best thing that could have happened to Justin Townes, who gets his name from Townes Van Zandt, one of Steve's favorite songwriters. Now sober and on a creative tear, the younger Earle had a chance to give Lowcountry Americana fans a taste of his decidedly old-school sound as he headlined the third annual Holy City Cold Heart Revival last Saturday at the Pour House on James Island.

Local musician Lindsay Holler, who performed with her new outfit, Western Polaroids, organized the music showcase this year. Throughout the evening the musical action jumped between the venue's inside and outside stages. In addition to Earle and Lindsay Holler's Western Polaroids, participating acts included Raleigh, N.C.'s, American Aquarium and an impressive array of local acts, including LASSO, Quasiphonics, Harrison Ray, Mac Leaphart, Shovels & Rope and Kentucky Shoes.

The show started uncharacteristically early for a local club performance, with the first act playing at 7:30 p.m. Unfortunately for me, I got to the Pour House a little before 9 p.m., meaning I missed everything before Kentucky Shoes, so my apologies to LASSO, Quasiphonics and Harrison Ray. Featuring Jamie Resch, Charleston's answer to Lucinda Williams, Kentucky Shoes charmed the crowd with its high lonesome sound, made even more melancholy by the inclusion of some great cello playing.

Outside on the deck, Mac Leaphart played a rowdy set that seemed to meld Gram Parsons with the "Sticky Fingers"-era Rolling Stones, complete with Charlie Thompson sitting in on pedal steel. Highlights from Leaphart's set included "White Shoes, Silver Britches," the gorgeous "Confederate Roses," and a great cover of "Tulsa Time."

Next up was Justin Townes Earle, who, along with multi-instrumentalist Cory Younts, completely blew me away. I am a big fan of Steve Earle's music, and while I knew that his son was also a performer, I had not had a chance to hear his music until Saturday's show. Rather than imitate his father's outlaw with brains style of Americana music, Justin Townes Earle demonstrated a performing style that owed more to Hank Williams than Steve Earle. With his felt cowboy hat cocked to one side, Earle hunched over the microphone and surveyed the crowd with a curiously penetrating gaze as he performed with Younts. While just about every song Earle played Saturday night was good, my personal favorites were the original "You Can't Leave" (which Earle told the audience he wrote for "a girl who didn't really appreciate it"), as well as a superb cover of the Replacements' "Can't Hardly Wait."

Lindsay Holler's Western Polaroids closed out the show with a set of originals and one unexpected cover. Holler has done something that is deceptively difficult - she has moved on from the demise of her former band, the Dirty Kids, and has assembled a group of local musicians that make her music sound even better than it did before.

Songs such as "Hell-tember," "#9," and "Nothing Tonight" sounded as good as ever, but my personal favorite moment was Holler's unique take on Guns 'N' Roses' "Mr. Brownstone." For Holler's final song, many of the local artists that had performed earlier in the evening joined her on the stage to sing along, ending the event on a high note.

Contact Devin Grant at chucktowncritic@yahoo.com.