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Musings on folk, Americana, country, bluegrass and newgrass

Category Archives: Music Festival


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MerleFest announces new additions to 2018 lineup including Bela Fleck, Abigail Washburn, Mandolin Orange and Brandy Clark

I’m so pleased to announce some of my personal favorites — Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn and Chapel Hill’s Mandolin Orange — have just been added to the MerleFest 2018 lineup, which just keeps getting better!
From the good folks over at MerleFest, this just in:
MerleFest, presented by Window World and slated for April 26 – 29, is proud to announce five additions to the 2018 lineup: The Mavericks, Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn, Mandolin Orange, Alison Brown, and Brandy Clark. The annual homecoming of musicians and music fans returns to the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. MerleFest has already announced over 75 artists for 2018, including Kris Kristofferson, Jamey Johnson, Rodney Crowell, Rhiannon Giddens, Elephant Revival, The Devil Makes Three, a Midnight Jam hosted by Town Mountain and Jim Lauderdale, and many more. The rest of the distinguished lineup for MerleFest 2018 will roll out over the next few months.

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The Rives Theatre kicks off new year with Chamber Night featuring The Trogone Band

The good folks at the annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival are sponsoring the first show of 2018 on Saturday, Jan. 13, at the historic Rives Theatre in uptown Martinsville, Virginia. Continue reading →


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MerleFest announces impressive lineup of judges for 2018 Chris Austin Songwriting Contest including Rodney Crowell, Andrew Marlin and Johnny Williams

This just in from the good folks over at MerleFest:
WILKESBORO, N.C. (January 10, 2018) – MerleFest, presented by Window World and taking placeApril 26 – 29, 2018, has assembled a distinguished team of songwriters – Rodney Crowell, Andrew Marlin (of Mandolin Orange), and previous winner Johnny Williams (of Jeanette Williams Band) – to judge the on-site final round of this year’s Chris Austin Songwriting Contest.

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Northwest String Summit celebrates 17th anniversary July 19 – 22, 2018, at Horning’s Hideout near Portland, Oregon

From the good folks at the Northwest String Summit:

PORTLAND, OREGON — The 17th Annual Northwest String Summit (String Summit) is one of the top boutique live music experiences in the country and presents an array of today’s leaders in the Americana, Bluegrass, Indy Rock, and Jam genres. It all happens at the iconic Horning’s Hideout (North Plains, OR) from July 19 – 22, 2018. Located just 20 miles outside of Portland, Oregon, Horning’s Hideout, a private family-owned reserve of old-growth trees, wild peacocks, ponds, and campsites, stands as one of the most scenic festival sites in the country. A family friendly and locally sourced festival, String Summit caps its capacity at 5,000 attendees to ensure an intimate experience for all festivalgoers at an incredible ticket price. Continue reading →


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Year in Review: My favorite musical picks for 2017

While 2017 will be remembered for many things, it turned out to be a great year for new music. Artists including Steve Earle & the Dukes, Lee Ann Womack, Chris Stapleton, Rhiannon Giddeons and Jason Isbell turned out some amazing albums over the past 12 months, but you don’t need me to tell you that.

Instead, I am going to focus on my own purely subjective list that evolves mainly from music festivals I attended, interviews I conducted and stories I published online on this blog, HalfwaySouth.com or on HuffPost that features my favorite genres (primarily folk, Americana, country, rock) and up-and-coming artists that I hope you will take the time to listen to in the coming year and beyond.

And now, in no particular order, here’s my picks for the best listens of 2017. Happy listening! Continue reading →


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Ring in the new year on a live musical note

Still looking for ideas to close out 2017 and welcome the new year? There are myriad live music options at venues in and around North Carolina’s Triangle and beyond. The following list is in alphabetical order and in no way comprehensive so please feel free to share other options. Happy New Year!

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Don’t miss Yarn, Town Mountain and Amanda Anne Platt performing at the Lincoln Theatre on Dec. 16-17

Let me give you the bad news first, The Connells and Billy Strings shows are sold out this weekend.

The good news is that you can still get tickets to see three of my favorites this weekend at the Lincoln Theatre: Yarn and The Dune Dogs on Saturday in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, and Town Mountain and Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters are bringing their Asheville Holiday Hang to the Triangle on Sunday.

If you’ve been to Rooster Walk Music and Arts Festival, you’re already a fan of formerly Brooklyn-based Yarn, alt-country, roots rockers who now call North Carolina home. And the Ocracoke, North Carolina-based Dune Dogs call themselves “country-fried swamp n’ roll.”

The Asheville Holiday Hang is an event focused on highlighting talent from the Asheville music community, while raising awareness and donating partial proceeds to Feeding America food banks in each city. Continue reading →


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11th annual DelFest initial lineup features Old Crow Medicine Show, The Wood Brothers, Elephant Revival, Fruition

This just in from the good folks over at DelFest:
In July, Del McCoury began sending out hand rolled parchment invitations to a select group of deserving musical participants to join his DelFest 2018 Bluegrass Congress. On Memorial Day weekend, May 24-27, 2018, the Bluegrass Congress, which includes Ricky Skaggs, David Grisman, Sam Bush, Béla Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Bryan Sutton and Stuart Duncan, will officially be called to order. These musicians represent the best at what they do in the field of bluegrass and will convene on Saturday evening (May 26), joining the Del McCoury Band for a picking party like none other in festival history. In addition to the Saturday evening show, most members of Congress will play their own set during DelFest (see lineup below).
Along with the primary Congress, this year’s lineup is heavy on picking with fan favorites like Old Crow Medicine Show, The Wood Brothers, Elephant Revival and Fruition.

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MerleFest announces artist additions to April 26-29, 2018, lineup

Greensboro, North Carolina, native and Grammy Award winner Rhiannon Giddens is among the more than 75 artists scheduled to perform April 26-29 at MerleFest on the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, festival organizers announced today.

Giddens, who is also a recent $625,000 MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient and a welcome addition to the hit TV show, “Nashville,” is among four additional artists revealed by the festival along with Elephant Revival, Rodney Crowell and Shinyribs. Continue reading →


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Rooster Walk 10 announces initial lineup featuring JJ Grey & Mofro, Marcus King Band, Billy Strings and Jerry Douglas

Rooster Walk Music and Arts Festival fans, listen up:

The Axton, Virginia, Memorial Day weekend music festival set for May 24-27 turns 10 in 2018 and the initial roll out of artists in the lineup doesn’t disappoint.

J Grey & Mofro,, a southern soul and funk band from Florida, and The Marcus King Band along with  Billy Strings will return, both of whom were big hits at Rooster Walk 9. MerleFest favorite and dobro master Jerry Douglas and his jazz-grass band including guitarist Mike Seal and drummer Doug Belote, will make their Rooster Walk debut.

Also announced were Rooster Walk staples Americana/alt-country rockers Yarn  and R&B rockers Commonheart.

Of these acts, The Marcus King Band, Billy Stirngs, Yarn and The Commonheart are slated to play two sets each.

Early bird tickets are now on sale at this link. http://roosterwalk.com/rw-10/rw9-tickets/
The family friendly festival is held at the idyllic Pop’s Farm music venue located just outside of Martinsville.
Rooster Walk 10 will feature some 50 bands as well as arts/crafts/food vendors, kids’ activities, outdoor activities, on-site camping and more.