ALT-COUNTRY legend Eilen Jewell will be visiting Heartbreakers in Southampton on Sunday.

Known for a country and blues-infused version of contemporary folk, Eilen’s discography includes several albums of original material and one of Loretta Lynn covers.

She has also recorded two albums with her eight-piece gospel-group side project the Sacred Shakers, but her latest effort, Down Hearted Blues, which she and Beek co-produced, with engineering by pianist/banjo player Steve Fulton and Pat Storey, is her first collection of blues –despite the fact that she credits the genre for igniting her musical curiosity in the first place.

For the album, Eilen and Beek unearthed 12 vintage gems written or made famous by an array of artists both renowned and obscure, from Willie Dixon and Memphis Minnie to Charles Sheffield and Betty James. Then, like expert stonecutters, they chiselled them into exciting new shapes and forms, honouring history while breathing new life into each discovery.

Eilen laughs when told her label’s president called her a musicologist. But she confirms she and her husband and bandmate, drummer Jason Beek, have a passion for studying American music.

“We really love to uncover the past,” she says. “It’s almost like digging for buried treasure.

“For me, that’s where music is at. I like all kinds of music as long as there’s the word early in front of it.”

Tickets are £14 in advance and are on sale now: mirrormanshop.bigcartel.com.