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MerleFest 2018: Town Mountain

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As MerleFest 2018 approaches, a highlight from one of the 100+ performing acts will be featured daily…

Town Mountain on Fire After Grand Ole Opry & Ryman Auditorium Debuts
New Album In The Works For 2018 – Recorded at Echo Mountain Studios in Asheville, NC

ASHEVILLE, NC — Raw, soulful, and with plenty of swagger, Town Mountain has earned raves for their hard-driving sound, their in-house songwriting and the honky-tonk edge that permeates their exhilarating live performances, whether in a packed club or at a sold-out festival. The hearty base of Town Mountain’s music is the first and second generation of bluegrass spiced with country, old school rock ‘n’ roll, and boogie-woogie. It’s what else goes into the mix that brings it all to life both on stage and on record and reflects the group’s wide-ranging influences – from the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia and the ethereal lyrics of Robert Hunter, to the honest, vintage country of Willie, Waylon, and Merle.

The Bend Bulletin’s Brian McElhiney says Town Mountain, “has serious country and rock ’n’ roll DNA.” Town Mountain features guitarist and vocalist Robert Greer, banjoist Jesse Langlais, mandolinist Phil Barker, fiddler Bobby Britt, and Zach Smith on bass.

Town Mountain is working on their 6th studio album and was recently recording in Echo Mountain Studios with Producer Caleb Klauder. The forthcoming album will be full of new original material and released later in the year. They are also excited to be the host of the 2018 MerleFest Midnight Jam and will be performing at Joe Val Bluegrass Festival and John Hartford Memorial Festival among others in 2018.

Their 5th studio album, Southern Crescent, came out April 1, 2016 on LoHi Records. Produced and engineered by GRAMMY winner Dirk Powell, Southern Crescent was recorded in Powell’s studio The Cypress House in south-central Louisiana town of Breaux Bridge. Since it’s release the band debuted on the Grand Ole Opry and the Ryman Auditorium stages in 2016 bringing their sound to new audiences. The critically acclaimed album debuted at #4 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart while staying for ten weeks on the Americana Music Association’s radio chart Top 40.

“This Asheville band killed it at the Ryman this summer [2016] opening up the bluegrass series and they put out this stellar collection of original songs that asserts them as the hippest, bluest traditional bluegrass band of their generation. In an era of bluegrass with manners, they cut with a serrated edge,” exclaims Nashville’s Roots Radio’s Craig Havighurst in his list of “Essential Americana Albums We Loved in 2016.” Town Mountain returned to the Grand Ole Opry in July 2017!


Other albums include Leave The Bottle (Pinecastle Records 2012), Steady Operator (Pinecastle Records 2011), and Heroes & Heretics (October 2008). They also independently released a LIVE album (2014 from a show at Isis Music Hall in Asheville) as well as a two-song EP (2015) of Grateful Dead tunes called The Dead Sessions. Their debut album (June 2008) is entitled Original Bluegrass and Roots Country and KSUT/Durango Telegraph’s Chris Aaland writes, “No critic has coined a better phrase to describe their sound.”

While the members have taken the road less traveled when it comes to the mainstream or traditional purists, they’ve been dubbed as “The Taco Stand Troubadours” by Aaland (due to their frequent stops at such establishments) and he calls them “one of those bands that has paid its dues and won over the Durango audience through the years, much like the Gourds and Leftover Salmon.

They have performed opening shows with Railroad Earth, Peter Rowan, Hard Working Americans, Greensky Bluegrass, Yonder Mountain String Band, Hackensaw Boys, Ralph Stanley and his Clinch Mountain Boys, The Del McCoury Band, The Seldom Scene, The Infamous Stringdusters, Bobby Hicks, The Steep Canyon Rangers, and Jim Lauderdale among others.

What has become one of the group’s more memorable live performance songs is their cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire,” which they first recorded in 2008’s Heroes & Heretics, with Greer’s distinctive Southern drawl at the forefront. The track has reached over 3.3 million listens on Spotify. The Atlantic’s Matt Vasilogambros writes, “Bruce Springsteen is a natural fit for bluegrass… Even the Boss’s earlier music had hints of folk influences. Just listen to “I’m On Fire”… I keep turning to one cover, which I admittedly listen to more often than the original. It’s from Town Mountain… They dropped the synthesizer, added a banjo, a fiddle, and another singer for harmony, and made a gem.”

Another fan favorite is their Jimmy Martin-esque original “Lawdog,” penned by Barker in 2012, which music journalist Juli Thanki instantly called an “unearthed classic” when the album was released. They recorded a live version of the song at WAMU’s Bluegrass Country Radio in 2013 which has over 125,000 views and continues to be a barn burner to this day with the entire crowd singing along as barker sings, “I make my livin driving, I’m a bluegrass music man… Chasin the horizon, for another one night stand… I got a lot of miles to travel, and I’m runnin’ a little late… And a no show gets me nothin, so don’t you get in my way. I got no time for ya lawdog…”

“While it remains a bluegrass band in all things instrumentation and touring the bluegrass and festival circuit, it’s’ sound crosses into American roots and even outlaw country, perhaps as a result of the gritty, mournful tone of Greer’s vocals.” Durango’s KDUR radio’s DJ, Bryant Liggett says, “It is reminiscent of the 1970s truck-driving film sound, the perfect accompaniment to a car chase through the south á la ‘Smokey and the Bandit.’”

Bio provided courtesy of www.townmountain.net

You can hear Town Mountain perform at one of their three sets on Saturday (April 28) at MerleFest, including a Midnight Jam, where they will serve as host along with Jim Lauderdale.

Saturday, 12:30pm-1:15pm (Hillside Stage)
Saturday, 7:45pm-8:45pm (Dance Stage)
Saturday, 10:30pm-12:30am (Walker Center)

View the full MerleFest schedule and stage lineup here.

MerleFest 2018: Kruger Brothers

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As MerleFest 2018 approaches, a highlight from one of the 100+ performing acts will be featured daily…

In an ever-expanding body of work, Jens Kruger (banjo, vocals), Uwe Kruger (guitar,
lead vocals), and Joel Landsberg (bass, vocals) personify the spirit of exploration and
innovation that forms the core of the American musical tradition.

Although initially staying fairly close to a traditional repertoire, the Kruger Brothers
later turned to songwriting and composition in order to draw more closely from their
personal experiences. The result is a catalog of songs and music distinguished by its rich
detail and an insight into the delicacy and complexity of everyday life.

The honesty of their writing has become a hallmark of the trio’s work. Another is the
banjo playing and composition of Jens Kruger. Happy Traum has described Kruger as
“one of the world’s most musically sophisticated and technically accomplished fivestring
banjo players.” Steve Martin has described Jens Kruger as “one of the great
technicians” of bluegrass as well as “a very expressive player.” Kruger plays in a melodic
style that, while it may stem from the three-finger bluegrass style popularized by Snuffy
Jenkins and Earl Scruggs, is also differentiated by long melodic passages and a more
complex compositional foundation, often building on jazz or classical themes and
techniques.

In recognition of his style and skill, Jens Kruger is an inductee to the Blue Ridge Music
Hall of Fame (2011) and is the fourth recipient of the coveted Steve Martin Prize for
Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass (2013).

The recording that cemented the Kruger Brothers’ sound and song writing, Up 18 North,
was released in 2002 on the Double Time label. Included were a number of tracks that
signaled the direction that the band was to take in future projects. The title track “Up
18 North” is an instrumental piece, with banjo clearly in the foreground, that remains a
prime example of the type of close ensemble playing that characterizes the trio’s work.
The vocal track “Carolina in the Fall” is an early example of the very personal, resonant,
and mature song writing that they continue to this day.

Most recently their music has ventured further into the themes and forms of classical
music, most obviously in their 2011 release, Appalachian Concerto and the 2015 release
Lucid Dreamer. Through their numerous CD releases, radio and television performances,
workshops, and collaborative efforts, the Kruger Brothers continue to provide a unique
voice in the world of folk, Americana and classical music.

Overview provided by Kruger Brothers media

You can hear the Kruger Brothers perform at one of the following times during MerleFest (April 26-29).

Thursday, 3:00pm-3:45pm (Watson Stage)
Friday, 12:15pm-1:00pm (Americana Stage)
Friday, 2:45pm-3:30pm (Hillside Stage)
Saturday, 10:00am-11:00am (Walker Center)
Saturday, 6:00pm-6:45pm (Creekside)

View the full MerleFest schedule and stage lineup here.

MerleFest 2018: Peter Rowan

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As MerleFest 2018 approaches, a highlight from one of the 100+ performing acts will be featured daily…

Another GRAMMY winner, Peter Rowan is scheduled for four sets over three days at MerleFest this year.

GRAMMY-award winner and six-time GRAMMY nominee, Peter Rowan is a bluegrass singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades. From his early years playing under the tutelage of bluegrass patriarch Bill Monroe, Peterʼs stint in Old & In the Way with Jerry Garcia and his subsequent breakout as both a solo performer and bandleader, Rowan has built a devoted, international fan base through his continuous stream of original recordings, collaborative projects, and constant touring.

On the Friday preceding MerleFest, April 20, Rowan’s latest album “Carter Stanley’s Eyes” will debut.

The album pays respects to bluegrass’s most famous brothers with two songs penned by each; others, such as the traditional “Hills of Roane County” and the Carter Family’s “Will You Miss Me,” were Stanley Brothers staples. Even the album’s opener, Rowan’s own “Drumbeats on the Watchtower,” nods to Ralph, who retitled it (from “Wild Geese Cry Again”) when he recorded it. Obviously, Rowan didn’t mind. In fact, he was ecstatic when Stanley told him he’d cut it. “To me, that was real fulfillment, to be covered by one of the masters,” he says.

You can hear Peter Rowan at one of the following times over MerleFest (April 26-29) weekend.

Friday, 4:00pm-4:45pm (Hillside Stage)
Saturday, 12:45pm-1:30pm (Walker Center)
Saturday, 1:45pm-2:45pm (Watson Stage)
Sunday, 3:30pm-4:15pm (Traditional)

View the full MerleFest schedule and stage lineup here.

Merlefest 2018: Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer

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As MerleFest 2018 approaches, a highlight from one of the 100+ performing acts will be featured daily…

Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer have been making music together for over 35 years, playing a variety of instruments including guitar, ukulele, mandolin, five string banjo and cello banjo to name a few. In fact, Marxer plays over 50-plus instruments and their harmonies together create a unique sound leading to 14 GRAMMY nominations and two wins during their career.

They have traveled the world with their music, performing, collaborating and teaching along the way. Both have closely followed the history of bluegrass and have strong ties to North Carolina with a residence in Lansing, home of Ola Belle Reed, an iconic North Carolina musician.

RedDirtNC recently caught up with Fink to discuss some of that history and MerleFest, which takes place in Wilkesboro this month on April 26-29.

RDNC: Having a residence in Lansing, are you originally from North Carolina or what led you here to our state?

CF: No, originally I’m from Baltimore, Maryland and my partner, Marcy Marxer is originally from Detroit, Michigan. We serendipitously met in 1980 at a folk festival in Toronto, Ontario of all places. We now split our time between a home in Lansing, North Carolina – the home of Ola Belle Reed, and Silver Spring, Maryland. We tour full time and don’t get to see either of these homes as much as we want to but we’ve got feet planted in both North Carolina and Maryland.

Our tie to Lansing is kind of an interesting story. Ola Belle was a consummate traditional musician and songwriter who grew up here in Lansing and her song, “High on a Mountain” has been one of the most important songs of bluegrass for 50 years. Del McCoury recorded it in 1962, Marty Stuart in the 1980s and she’s written hundreds of more songs and I think that Ola Belle was one of those iconic musicians from North Carolina whose music traveled all over the world. She won a National Heritage Fellowship Award from the National Councilman of Traditional Arts and we in the 1980s visited Ola Belle and her family many, many times.

Our connection to Lansing had to do with helping start the Ola Belle Reed Festival, in honor of Ola Belle and that festival went for about 10 years. It is not going anymore but we instead work with the Ashe County Arts Council to host an Ola Belle Reed Songwriting Retreat, which this year is April 13-15, in order to help keep Ola Belle’s music and name vibrant in the area. That’s part of Marcy and I’s being active in this music community and this combination of one-foot in traditional and one-foot in contemporary songwriting, so we have some pretty deep roots in North Carolina.

RDNC: How many years have you been performing at MerleFest?

CF: Our first MerleFest was around 25 years ago and this is probably our fifth performance through the years and what an amazing festival it has become.

RDNC: What is your favorite thing about MerleFest overall?

CF: My favorite thing about the festival, honestly, is the music. I love performing there but I also love hearing other people perform. It’s a festival with excellent sound and tech which makes the listening experience really pleasurable. Festivals are where Marcy and I meet a lot of our new music friends. We get to hear people we haven’t heard before, we get to hear friends of ours who play a lot, that we don’t see very often and we have a hoot in the vendor tent because we know all the vendors, instrument makers and we love hanging out in there and jamming – it’s really a lot of fun.

It’s a combination of things, for us it’s a great performance venue. It’s a great audience listening venue. It’s a great jam session and a family reunion. I also don’t want to overlook the fact that it’s an incredible tribute to Doc and Merle Watson and the amazing musical contributions they both made. The fact that their music has, among other things, helped build this worldwide community for people who like acoustic guitar picking.

RDNC: Your particular sound has often been described as “well rounded Americana” but into what particular genre would you place the music you make?

CF: (laughs) I think well rounded Americana is good because our sound is built on playing a lot of traditional old time music that comes from the fiddle tune tradition, old-time song tradition and harmony singing but at the same time we are enamored with the music of songwriters like Ola Belle Reed, Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard. Add to it that we write a lot of our own songs and we’ve escaped picking one genre for Cathy and Marcy which is where well rounded Americana comes into play.

Between us, we play a lot of musical instruments. Marcy plays over 50 instruments, she’s a phenomenal guitar player and was the main person who really re-invented the four-string cello banjo and brought it back to Americana music. People like Abagail Washburn and Ricky Skaggs, who plays one from time to time. Marcy was the one who made it prominent and inspired the Gold Tone company to bring it back.

My specialty is the five-string banjo and guitar. I play a little fiddle and we both play a lot of ukulele. The well rounded part is important but we also have, throughout our career, had a commitment to really great music for kids and families so they get a chance to hear live music with real musicians.

RDNC: Who are some of the artists that you’re looking forward to hearing during MerleFest this year?

CF: Among our friends that we have hung out with and played music with, I look forward to hearing David Holt, Happy Traum and Rhiannon Giddens – I was her first banjo teacher in North Carolina at the Swannanoa Gathering. There’s a new bluegrass band called Cane Mill Road who we’ve been mentoring and their going to be performing there.

There are some bands that we haven’t heard live but I can’t wait to hear. We listen to their albums and recordings but it’s a whole different thing to hear people play live, it’s exciting. We’re looking forward to hearing Mandolin Orange, Alison Brown, We Banjo 3 … it’s a big lineup.

One of our goals is to hear people we haven’t heard before. We try to catch our friends as much as we can but the way you learn something at these festivals is to go see someone you haven’t heard. To me, that is a really important piece of the whole thing.

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Fink and Marxer have a new album coming out soon with Appalachian musician Sam Gleaves called, “Shout and Shine” and will introduce the trio for the first-time at MerleFest. Currently, they are scheduled to perform on Friday and Saturday this year.

Friday, 9:30am-10:15am (Creekside)
Friday, 1:30pm-2:00pm (Cabin Stage)*
Saturday, 11:00am-11:30am (Little Pickers)
Saturday, 6:00pm-6:30pm (Traditional)*

*Trio with Sam Gleaves

View the full MerleFest schedule and stage lineup here.

MerleFest: April 26-29, 2018 Overview

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April has arrived and MerleFest is happening this month here in the mountains of North Carolina…

From humble beginnings, much like the festival founders, MerleFest has grown into one of the world’s largest musical events. The now four day show occurs on the campus of Wilkes Community College (WCC) in northwest North Carolina with over 100 artists performing on 14 stages, entertaining over 75,000 spectators annually.

The first show occurred in 1988 when WCC horticulture instructor Frederick Townes IV, nicknamed “B”, orchestrated a one-night performance from Doc Watson to serve as a fundraiser for the development of a sensory garden for the blind. Watson agreed, asking that the garden be named in honor of his late son, Merle.

Merle Watson was best known for his musical performances alongside his farther as the two released 12 albums over 21 years before his untimely death in a tractor accident on the family farm. The grounds at WCC became known as the Eddy Merle Watson Garden for the Senses and the event evolved into its current state over the past 30 years.

Brining together traditional bluegrass plus those who flirt with a similar sound in some respect, many world renowned performers have graced one of the many stages at MerleFest during their careers. Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, John Prine, Ricky Skaggs, Alison Krauss, The Avett Brothers and Old Crow Medicine Show are just a handful of the names whose music has been heard here before.

As each year brings in even more talent with a stellar lineup, the 2018 festival is no different. Kris Kristofferson, Robert Earl Keen, Shinyribs, Jamey Johnson, Brandy Clark, Rodney Crowell, Rhiannon Giddens, Sam Bush and Steve Martin with the Steep Canyon Rangers are some of the acts who will put their musical talents on display during MerleFest 2018.

Music begins on Thursday afternoon at 2:30pm and continues through the weekend until the festival concludes on Sunday at 5:30pm, following Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers.

The full lineup and stage performances can be found here or by visiting MerleFest.org. Tickets are also available, including two reserved seating options for a four-day pass and general admission as a multi or single day ticket. Rivers Edge camping is also an option for those planning to attend the entire event.

Get your tickets now before it’s too late and stay tuned to our ongoing coverage throughout the month leading up to the kickoff and throughout MerleFest 2018!