Valley Queen is one of those bands that reminds you of a guitar’s boundless potential. Their brand of crisp country rock is tight yet majestic and sunny yet soulful, recalling the ‘70s without simply relying upon nostalgia to engage the listener.

An integral part of their well-defined sound is singer Natalie Carol, whose gorgeous belted vocals compete with the guitars as the star in any given Valley Queen song, and whose Arkansan origins help to give this Los Angeles band their bluesy Southern flair. We spoke with Carol about her past and Valley Queen’s future shortly after the March release of their Destroyer EP.