Americana Archive
13 Jun 2021
The JackTown Ramblers: Blue Notes and Bluegrass
To most listeners, the musical connection between jazz manouche (also known as “gypsy jazz”) and Appalachian bluegrass isn’t immediately obvious. But Western North Carolina sextet The JackTown Ramblers explore the region on the Venn Diagram where those styles intersect. The members of the group are well positioned to understand and explain the relationship between those
12 Jun 2021
Vagabond Crowe: Balancing Roots and a New Direction
Hendersonville, N.C. band Vagabond Crowe began as an alternative American/folk band, and recently recorded and released its debut album, Fortune Teller. But as co-leader, songwriter Mitch Stewart explains, creativity often means change, and today the group looks and sounds different from before. Your website says that the songs on Fortune Teller were “written in the
29 May 2021
Pretty Little Goat’s Music of the Mountains
Pretty Little Goat bridges the gap between old time and contemporary music. Loosely defined as a string band, the Brevard-based quartet draws much of its inspiration from the music of the mountains, says mandolinist Josh Carter. “The hills are always calling,” he says. But although Pretty Little Goat has its roots in tradition, the group
26 May 2021
Stringduster Travis Book, At Your Service
This interview appeared previously in Bold Life Magazine. Launched in 2006, jamgrass sensations The Infamous Stringdusters would go on to build their reputation on the strength of live shows. Temporarily sidelined by the pandemic, in December the band released its first holiday album, Dust the Halls. Several band members also began offering personalized music instruction
25 May 2021
Dom Flemons: American Folk Music’s Past, Present and Future
Though he first came to prominence in as a member of Grammy-winning string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, since leaving that Durham-based group, Dom Flemons has carved out a richly rewarding musical identity of his own. Known as the “American Songster” (the title of his second solo album), multi-instrumentalist Flemons has earned an important place
24 May 2021
Steep Canyon Rangers: Arm in Arm with Their Fans
This feature appeared previously in Bold Life Magazine. Steep Canyon Rangers have been on a roll of late. Over the last decade, the North Carolina group has released an album of new music on a nearly annual basis. March 2020 saw the release of Be Still Moses, which is – depending on how one counts
01 May 2021
30 Days Out, May 2021 #1: Mayday AVL, the Wooks, DeeOhGee, Doom Flamingo
The time last year the term social distancing was just starting to creep into wide usage. And use of the term pods to describe clusters of seating at concerts was a thoroughly alien concept. But here we are heading toward the middle of 2021, and while live shows are indeed returning, the ground rules are
15 Apr 2021
30 Days Out, April 2021 #2: Ashley Heath, Day & Dream, Hustle Souls, Travers Brothership
Well, it looks as if live music has now truly returned, after a fashion. Social distancing remains in effect, but the warmer weather opens up opportunities to enjoy live music in (relative) safety. For this welcome-back edition of 30 Days Out, I’m focusing on all local acts. Artist: Ashley Heath and Her Heathens Venue: The
04 Apr 2021
The Krüger Brothers: It’s Not That Far from Western Europe to Western North Carolina
The trio formed by Swiss musicians Jens and Uwe Krüger draws inspiration from the American bluegrass and folk music of Bill Monroe, Doc Watson and others in the lively acoustic traditions. Adding their own unique spin, the brothers (plus American bassist Joel Landsberg) have wowed audiences worldwide. Starting with their 1995 debut Behind the Barn,
01 Apr 2021
30 Days Out, April 2021 #1: Alexa Rose, Brie Capone, David LaMotte, Eric Gales
I’ll spare you the April Fools Day jokes and instead move on to letting you know about foru live-and-in-person music performances happening in the next 30 days in Asheville. Three are locally-based artists (who customarily tour pretty widely), so not only are these opportunities to see live music, they represent a sampling of the best