The Los Angeles duo Eastmountainsouth create a country-folk blend that's characteristic of the bandmates' Southern upbringings. Comprised of vocalists Kat Maslich and Peter Adams, Eastmountainsouth formed in 1999. Maslich, who was born and raised in Roanoke, VA (on Clinch Mountain, home to bluegrass hero Ralph Stanley), tried to find her place in music with short-lived stints in New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, and Atlanta. She traveled back and forth to Los Angeles in search of clarity, and a chance meeting with Adams grounded her. Adams, a native of Birmingham, AL, worked under composer Mikhail Kapsner while studying abroad in Freiburg, Germany. There, he focused on piano, organ, and composition, and such an experience motivated Adams to graduate with a B.A. in music from the University of the South in Tennessee and earn a master's degree from the University of Alabama School of Music in Tuscaloosa. In the late '90s, he moved to Los Angeles to study film scoring at USC and befriended Maslich at a TV spot audition. Adams was impressed with Maslich's warm voice and the two quickly learned of one another's songwriting similarities and shared interests in music. In two years' time, they christened themselves Eastmountainsouth and recorded a demo. Robbie Robertson got a copy and inked Eastmountainsouth a deal with Dreamworks; a self-titled debut appeared in summer 2003. ~ MacKenzie Wilson