UNDERHILL ROSE, “The Great Tomorrow,” no label. 11 tracks.

Listening to Underhill Rose‘s new album is like sitting on a shady veranda on a hot summer day with a paddle-fan overhead and a sweaty pitcher of lemonade beside you.

It’s that sweet and relaxing.

Most of the songs are ballads with harmonies that smooth away the stresses of life.

The Asheville, North Carolina-based trio was formed in 2009 by Eleanor Underhill and Molly Rose Reed. Salley Williamson, the bass player, joined later, making the duo a trio.

Their 2013 album, “Something Real,” spent 10 weeks in the Americana Music Association’s Top 20.

And this album is likely to repeat or excel that.

All but one of the songs — Elliot Wolff‘s “Straight Up” — were written by band members.

“The Great Tomorrow” fits into that growing genre called Americana.

It’s not exactly bluegrass with its drums and electric guitars.

But it’s close enough for all but the most traditional fans.

Reed’s “When I Die” expresses sentiments you probably haven’t heard before — “When I die/wrap me in cotton/bury me low in the gournd/so that I may be helpful to the worms and the robins/while my soul takes its cosmic crown.”

Underhill’s “Whispering Pines Motel” begins, “There’s heat in the air tonight/with the smell of honeysuckle vines/driving past the Whispering Pines Motel.”

And you know something is going to happen there.

Reed’s “My Friend” says, “We grow up/we grow out of each other/the hardest part of all/now that we are at the end/is that I just can’t stand losing my friend.”

Williamson’s “Shine” is about a family held together by the moonshine trade — “The moon shines east/the moon shines west/but the moonshine from our cellar’s best.”

Underhill’s “The Great Tomorrow” offers the hope that “in the morning, it’s all gonna be better/in the morning, I’m gonna get it together.”

Good album. Good band.

It’ll be available on June 30.

Can’t find it in stores? Try www.underhillrose.com/music/

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Tags: americana, underhill rose

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