Those who came to Grimey’s New and Preloved Music in Nashville on Friday evening were in for a special treat, as Kelsey Waldon took the record store’s stage to celebrate a special occasion.
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We still have Americanafest on the brain. Naturally, you’ll see a lot of the artists we encountered throughout the weekend making appearances on this week’s playlist.
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Our Saturday afternoon at Americanafest was spent on top of the world.
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Thursday night was a hot one in Music City, as Americanafest continued all over town.
For us, that meant hanging out at 1 Cannery Row, whose venues — Cannery Ballroom, Mercy Lounge, The High Watt, and One — featured enough diverse musical offerings and electricity in the air to feel like its own festival within the larger scope of the city’s week-long celebration.
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When Kendell Marvel took the stage at Nashville’s EXIT/IN on Tuesday night, he made a simple proclamation: “We’re going to play some country music.”
Boy, did they ever, The 20th installment of Kendell Marvel’s Honky Tonk Experience celebrated the first night of Americanafest 2019 with a brilliant lineup of some of country’s best players, and even saw Marvel inducted into rarified air: the EXIT/IN Wall of Fame.
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Copper Fields‘ songs have powerful lyrics, a crisp and full sound, and a blend of voices that rise in harmony. There is a story told through both their lyrical content and their instrumentation, which is alt-Americana tastefully merged with indie rock and a splash of old soul. Your head and your heart are sure to be moved.
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Handsome, thoughtful, and well-spoken, Christian Lopez is less concerned with the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle than with spending time back home with friends, family, and the old cars he and his dad like to tinker with.
At the same time, as interest in his multiple talents heats up, his fascination with discovering places, ideas, and music becomes stronger. Lopez has been stoking that fire for five years, since he began touring and learning how to turn a bunch of bar patrons into foot-stomping, cheering fans.
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MerleFest, the annual “traditional plus” festival in Wilkesboro, NC, is proud to announce new artist additions for MerleFest 2019: Brandi Carlile, Dailey & Vincent, and The Brother Brothers. The annual homecoming of musicians and music fans returns to the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, April 25-28.
Brandi Carlile: GRAMMY-nominated Brandi Carlile is currently celebrating her breakthrough new album, By The Way, I Forgive You, which debuted earlier this year at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Current Albums chart, Rock Albums chart and Americana/Folk Albums chart and Number 5 on the Billboard 200 chart—a career high for the Seattle-based group. Produced by Dave Cobb and Shooter Jennings, the album continues to receive overwhelming acclaim, including recent “Best Albums of 2018” coverage at Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, Billboard, NPR Music and more.
Most recently, Carlile joined forces with Sam Smith on a new duet version of “Party Of One.” Recorded at L.A.’s Capitol Studios, a portion of the profits from this recording will be donated to Children in Conflict via Brandi Carlile’s Looking Out Foundation as part of its ongoing campaign to raise $1 million for children impacted by war.
Beloved by fans and critics alike, Carlile has performed sold-out concerts across the world and has appeared on various TV shows including The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Tonight Show, The Today Show, Conan and CBS This Morning. Carlile will perform on Saturday evening at MerleFest.
Dailey & Vincent: Grand Ole Opry Members, five-time GRAMMY award winners individually, three-time GRAMMY award nominees collectively, four-time DOVE Award winners, and winners of 35 IBMA Awards altogether (including 3-time IBMA Entertainer of the Year Award winners and 3-Time Vocal Group of the Year Award winners), Jamie Dailey and Darrin Vincent, backed by one of the best bands on tour today, are some of the most reputable and elite entertainers in American music; bluegrass, traditional country and gospel music. Now on Season 3 of their nationally broadcast television series, “The Dailey & Vincent Show on RFD-TV,” Dailey & Vincent bring their music to a national audience on a weekly basis. After a decade spent performing together and with over 1,000 airings of their PBS special “Dailey & Vincent ALIVE – In Concert,” their concoction of fantastically instinctive vocal blends of Dailey’s tenor and Vincent’s reedy harmonies has gained them well-deserved praise for their own distinctive style and worldwide recognition as American Music gold. Their most recent live CD, Dailey & Vincent ALIVE, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Bluegrass charts and remained at the top position for over 15 weeks. Dailey & Vincent will appear on Thursday at MerleFest.
The Brother Brothers: The Brother Brothers are Adam and David Moss, identical twins carrying on the folk tradition for a new generation. Using minimal instrumentation, heartfelt lyricism, and harmonies so natural they seem to blend into one beautiful voice, the siblings draw on the energy and creativity of Brooklyn, New York for their full-length debut album, Some People I Know. The Brother Brothers will make their MerleFest debut on Saturday.
“For over 30 years, one of the major factors that has built and sustained MerleFest has been the quality of the artists and performances that our guests see over the 4 day festival,” says Ted Hagaman, festival director. “People truly feel that the festival is a great value and that is why music fans and families return year after year. We feel that the 2019 lineup again reflects the diversity and quality of performers and we look forward to another successful festival in April.”
The three artists announced today join over 75 artists announced last month via Rolling Stone Country. Headliners include Wynonna & The Big Noise, Keb’ Mo’, The Earls of Leicester, Sam Bush, Tyler Childers, and Peter Rowan and The Free Mexican Air Force. The Late Night Jam presented by The Bluegrass Situation will be hosted by Chatham County Line. In addition to the above mentioned artists, the following will be performing at MerleFest ‘19:
American Aquarium, Andy May, Ana Egge & The Sentimentals, AZTEC SUN, Banknotes, Bob Hill, Cane Mill Road, Carol Rifkin, Carolina Blue, Catfish Keith, Charles Welch, David LaMotte, Dirk Powell Band, Donna the Buffalo, Driftwood, Elephant Sessions, Elizabeth Cook, Ellis Dyson & The Shambles, Gordie MacKeeman & His Rhythm Boys, Happy Traum, Irish Mythen, Jack Lawrence, Jeff Little Trio, Jess Morgan, Jim Avett, Jim Lauderdale, Joe Smothers, Jontavious Willis and Andrew Alli, Junior Brown, Junior Sisk, Larry Stephenson Band, Laura Boosinger, Lindi Ortega, Mark Bumgarner, Mark & Maggie O’Connor, Maybe April, Michaela Anne, Mile Twelve, Mitch Greenhill and String Madness, Molly Tuttle, Nixon, Blevins, & Gage, Pete & Joan Wernick and FLEXIGRASS, Presley Barker, Professor Whizzpop!, Radney Foster, Roy Book Binder, Salt & Light, Scythian, Shane Hennessy, Si Kahn & The Looping Brothers, Steve Poltz, T Michael Coleman, The Black Lillies, The Gibson Brothers, The Harris Brothers, The InterACTive Theatre of Jeff, The Kruger Brothers, The Local Boys, The Trailblazers, The Waybacks, Todd Albright, Tom Feldmann, Tony Williamson, Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike, Wayne Henderson, Webb Wilder, and Yarn.
Additional performers for MerleFest 2019 will be announced in the coming months. The lineup and performance schedule is accessible via MerleFest.org/lineup.
Tickets for next year’s festival, as well as the Late Night Jam, go on sale at 10 a.m. EST November 13, 2018, and may be purchased at MerleFest.org or by calling 1-800-343-7857. MerleFest offers a three-tiered pricing structure and encourages fans to take advantage of the extended early bird discount. Early Bird Tier 1 tickets may be purchased from November 13 to February 17, 2019; Early Bird Tier 2 tickets from February 18 to April 24. Remaining tickets will be sold at the gate during the festival.
MerleFest was founded in 1988 in memory of the son of the late American music legend Doc Watson, renowned guitarist Eddy Merle Watson. MerleFest is a celebration of “traditional plus” music, a unique mix of traditional, roots-oriented sounds of the Appalachian region, including old-time, classic country, bluegrass, folk and gospel and blues, and expanded to include Americana, classic rock and many other styles. The festival hosts a diverse mix of artists on its 13 stages during the course of the four-day event. MerleFest has become the primary fundraiser for the WCC Foundation, funding scholarships, capital projects and other educational needs.
Photo credit: Valia DeYoung
Today, we take a ride on the internet highway to Williamsburg, VA to listen to Scott Grim’s solo debut. The two-song “Hallelujah, Then,” released in October 2018, is a story about love, loss, and religion, and offers a stark contrast in styles from one song to the next.
Nashville-based bluegrass artist Sierra Hull announced her ‘Christmas Time Is Here’ tour on Friday, designed to give back to several communities across the midwest and south this holiday season.
Each of the four tour stops will be partnered with Toys for Tots and/or a local food bank, seeking to ease the stress of the holidays for the less fortunate. Each attending fan who donates an unwrapped toy, canned foods, or makes a monetary donation to the local food bank on-site will receive a free, signed poster for Hull’s Grammy-nominated latest release, Weighted Mind, while supplies last.
Together, with her band (Justin Moses, Kai Welch, Eddie Barbash, Ethan Jodziewicz, and Jamie Dick), Hull aims to bring Christmas joy to those attending the shows and those in need this December. Details on each tour stop are below:
Dec. 7 — Sheldon Concert Hall — St. Louis, MO
(Toys for Tots, canned food, and monetary donations accepted for St. Louis Area Foodbank)
Dec. 8 — Franklin Theatre — Franklin, TN
(Toys for Tots, canned food, and monetary donations accepted for Second Harvest Food Bank)
Dec. 20 — Tangled String Studios — Huntsville, AL
(Monetary donations accepted for Food Bank of North Alabama)
Dec. 21 — Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts — Franklin, NC
(Toys for Tots, monetary donations accepted for Macon County Care Net)
For tickets and more information, please visit sierrahull.com/. For toy donation specifics, please visit the Toys for Tots website.