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Musings on folk, Americana, country, bluegrass and newgrass


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Reevestock Music Festival 2018

In what has become a trend for many bands, Charlotte-based folk-rock band Time Sawyer is once again hosting the Reevestock Music Festival in its hometown of Elkin, North Carolina, on Aug. 4-5, 2017, featuring none other than Time Sawyer, the Marcus King BandTown MountainDavid ChildersWilliam Wild and the Corey Hunt Band.
Started in 2011, the festival began as a fundraiser “for our beloved Reeves Theater, one the town’s oldest buildings, as we looked to aid in the buildings restoration,” Time Sawyer writes on its website. “In 2014, the Reeves building was purchased and is now privately owned.  The group is finishing the rebuilding and it will re-open as a performing arts venue with a bar and restaurant.

“Reevestock as a festival lives on, pushing into the future, still as a benefit festival put on by The Foothills Arts Council. We have created the Reevestock Scholarship Fund from the money raised each year at the festival to serve as our fundraising project. These scholarships are made available to Elkin and Starmount seniors looking to continue their education at any two-year program, four-year program, or technical school.“Reevestock offers something for everyone in the family and looks to benefit the community in every way possible. Great music for all ages, food and drinks made available by your favorite restaurants, and even activities for the kids. Music helps to bring us all together and that’s what Reevestock is all about. We hope to see you all the first weekend in August for some great music and fun.”

For ticket information and a schedule for Friday’s free show and Saturday’s lineup, visit http://www.reevestock.com.


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Listen Up: Live music opportunities abound for Memorial Day 2018

There are numerous live music festivals and venues throughout North Carolina, Virginia and beyond on tap to help you celebrate the official kickoff of summer over the upcoming Memorial Day holiday weekend. Following are a few highlights. If I’ve missed one, let me know! Continue reading


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North Carolina Museum of Art kicks off 2018 Summer Concert season with First Aid Kit, Shovels and Rope, Mandolin Orange in June

The North Carolina Museum of Art kicks off its 2018 Summer Concert Series with First Aid Kit and Jade Bird on Friday, June 8, which is already sold out as are tickets for Mandolin Orange’s June 23 show.

“Summer concerts and movies have been an NCMA tradition for two decades, and we’re excited to launch another season of great music and entertainment,” the website states. “Our venue — the Joseph M. Bryan, Jr., Theater in the Museum Park — is situated in the heart of the Museum campus amid gardens, meadows, woodlands, and sculpture.”

However, tickets are available for Shovels and Rope and Son Volt on at 8 p.m. on Saturday, June 16.

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32nd annual Carolina Blues Festival partnering with Greensboro Bound: A Literary Festival and local food bank on May 18-20, 2018

The 32nd annual Carolina Blues Festival,  the longest-running blues festival in the Southeast U.S., will host international, national, regional, and local blues acts for a weekend of full of blues, rain or shine on May 18-20, 2018, in downtown Greensboro, North Carolina, at LeBauer Park, organizers say.

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8th Annual Chantilly Farm Bluegrass & BBQ Festival to feature Balsam Range, Seldom Scene and Love Canon, among many others May 25-27 in Floyd, VA

I’ve never made it up to the annual Chantilly Farm Bluegrass & BBQ Festival in Floyd, Virginia, in part because it is over Memorial Day Weekend, when I can usually be found at another southwest Virginia music festival, Rooster Walk, which is just down the winding road at Pop’s Farm in Axton,Virginia.

Chantilly’s lineup for its eighth annual event set for May 25-27, 2018, however, may be the just the charm needed to get me up there this year. Continue reading


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Leftover Salmon, Chatham County Line, Front Country, Forlorn Strangers, Annabelle’s Curse among headliners for 2018 North Carolina Brewers & Music Festival set for May 11-12 in Huntersville

I have no idea how the North Carolina Brewers and Music Festival, which combines two of my favorite things, hasn’t hit my radar until now. Maybe it’s because it’s located at 4431 Neck Road in Huntersville, just north of Charlotte. Or maybe it’s because the organizers just never thought to reach out to me since it began in 2011, from what I can gather from the website.

It’s certainly not because of the music, or the featured breweries.

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RoosterWalk 10 announces band schedule for Memorial Day Weekend music and arts festival in Axton, Virginia

This just in from the good folks at RoosterWalk Music and Arts Festival: The band schedule is finalized!

RW 10 is set for May 24-27, 2018, at the idyllic Pop’s Farm in Axton, Virginia, just a hop, skip and a jump from Martinsville and Danville.

“You’ve been asking for the Daily Band Schedule. Well, fair music lover, ask no more! Head over to the band schedule page at RoosterWalk.com to begin planning your weekend, note by note!”

So put on your dancing shoes, pack up the kids and the tent and head on over to RW 10 for a holiday weekend that promises to be full of amazing music, craft beer, local cuisine, crafts, outdoor adventure and, most of all, fun.

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Grammy-award winning Alison Brown to headline 7th annual Carolina Bible Camp Bluegrass Festival on Sept. 8, 2018

From the good folks over at the Carolina Bible Camp Bluegrass Festival in Mocksville, North Carolina:

The seventh annual Carolina Bible Camp Bluegrass Festival lineup has been announced and includes the greatest number of performing artists in the one-day event’s history including Grammy-award winning Alison Brown, according to organizers. Continue reading


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Tickets for 2018 Appaloosa Roots Music Festival featuring Mandolin Orange, Town Mountain are half price through April 30

Appaloosa Roots Music Festival  has announced the initial lineup for Aug. 31-Sept. 2, 2018, will include not one, but three, of my personal favorites — North Carolina-based Mandolin Orange, Town Mountain and Fireside Collective — thanks in part to a grant from the state of Virginia’s tourism folks, otherwise known as “Virginia is for Lovers.” Continue reading


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Scythian among artists to release new albums at MerleFest 2018

If MerleFest has a house band, it’s Scythian.

The band, which blasts folk mixed with Celtic rock and Irish ballads, is composed of a group of siblings with Ukrainian roots — plus friends who create the group’s unique energy.

Scythian is a staple as headliners at Irish/Celtic music festivals across the country, as well festivals on the Americana/bluegrass circuit. Based in the Washington, D.C.-area, the band has performed at MerleFest for more than a decade.

The band kind of entered MerleFest through a side door.

Doc Watson discovered them busking in front of the gates and invited them in — much to the delight of their ever-growing fan base.

Scythian’s music is different, definitely. But what really sets the members of Scythian apart as people and musicians is their love and concern for others, especially the youngest and most vulnerable in our society.

This band of brothers (and sisters) is releasing its second children’s album, “Cake for Dinner 2: Twinkie Twins,” at the 31st annual MerleFest,April 26-29 on the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, about an hour northwest of Charlotte and west of the Triad.

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