Gig Alert: Amanda Shires

Amanda Shires
“When You Need A Train It Never Comes”
Playing Thursday at The Living Room (154 Ludlow St., L.E.S.)
Get: Tickets | Directions

The Texas girl, fiddler and crooner Amanda Shires is a shining example of how dynamic country and western music can be in 2011. Shires apprenticed with the famous Western swing group The Texas Playboys, so she has traditionalist cred. But she also hangs with a left-of-center Nashville music crowd that includes Justin Townes Earl and Jason Isbell, playing ukulele and fiddle while singing indie-tinged ballads with a voice full of warbling heartbreak. “When You Need A Train Never Comes” comes off of Shires’ fourth album, Carrying Lightning. It's an understated and wistful song that pairs Shires’ trademark vulnerability with crying steel guitar lines.