PATIO: Dirty Dead
– ALL AGES- LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVE DIRTY DEAD The guys who keep breaking boundaries with their grungy-rock boogie versions of the Grateful Dead songbook. Fronted by flautist Paul DeCirce, “the Pied Piper of Asheville” (Mountain Xpress), The Grey Eagle are pleased to host these legends of the local jam scene.
Ruston Kelly – Pale, Through the Window Tour
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY RUSTON KELLY Since making his debut with 2018’s Dying Star, Ruston Kelly has built a catalog of songs that search for transcendence in the most devastating and demanding of experiences: addiction, the strenuous work of self-evolution, the fallout of broken relationships. But in the writing of his latest album, the South Carolina-born artist found himself in unfamiliar emotional territory—a state of sustained joy and inner peace, brought on by a spiritual breakthrough and the dawning of a new love. Brimming with the grit and depth that’s always defined his output, Pale, Through the Window ultimately affirms Kelly as one of modern music’s most astute observers of the human heart and spirit. The follow-up to The Weakness—a 2023 release that earned major acclaim from the likes of Rolling Stone, The New York Times, NPR and led to his appearance on “Late Night with Seth Meyers”—Pale, Through the Window finds Kelly reuniting with his longtime collaborator Jarrad K, who also helmed production on Dying Star and 2020’s Shape & Destroy. The first body of work he’s recorded with his longtime touring band, the album centers on a singular sonic palette that often merges synth with pedal-steel guitar while fully embracing Kelly’s ardent love of classic pop-punk and emo—ultimately bringing a raw and potent energy to his soul-searching songwriting. Over the course of Pale, Through the Window’s 13 songs, Kelly offers up everything from the somber rumination of the LP’s title track and the rueful longing of “Twisted Root” (an intimate look at his history with addiction) to the radiant open-heartedness of love songs like “Waiting to Love You” and “Wayside” (a euphoric but unvarnished portrait of love against the backdrop of a world in flames). And in sharing such an all-embracing account of his journey to acceptance and peace, he aspires to provide others with the courage to persevere through their own personal chaos. “If someone’s struggling with doubt or hopelessness because of the state of the world or their relationship with God or with themselves, I hope this record leaves them with the sense that it can be okay and that love truly is the most powerful force we have available to us,” says Kelly. “I also hope they feel at least a sliver of the freedom and joy I felt in writing these songs—even if they’re just having a good time bobbing their head to ‘Waiting to Love You,’ I want everyone to be reminded that the world can be a joyful place.” verygently verygently is the collective force of three established Nashville singer-songwriters—Drew Erwin, Joey Hendricks, and Tristan Bushman—who came together in early 2024. With tours alongside Augustana, The Band Camino, and The Fray, combined with their debut EP, the band quickly turned heads thanks to their high-energy live shows and songs that blend wit and vulnerability, weaving heartache with the undeniable charm of three best friends sharing the stage.
Joe Pug
ALL AGES SEATED SHOW LIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLE JOE PUG A singer-songwriter known for his lyrical acumen and plaintive harmonica style, Joe Pug dropped out of college and moved to Chicago where he worked as a carpenter before breaking into the city’s music scene. Since 2008 he has released a string of critically-acclaimed albums and toured heavily in the U.S. and abroad. Paste Magazine wrote of his music: “Unless your surname is Dylan, Waits, Ritter or Prine, you could face-palm yourself to death trying to pen songs half as inspired.” He has toured with Steve Earle, Levon Helm, The Killers, Justin Townes Earle, Sturgill Simpson, and many others. He has appeared at Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, and The Newport Folk Festival. His music has appeared on NPR’s “Prairie Home Companion” and “Mountain Stage”. His music has been released by Lightning Rod Records, which features an alumni roster of Jason Isbell, Billy Joe Shaver, and James McMurtry. Additionally, he is the creator and host of the popular podcast The Working Songwriter.
Sunny Sweeney
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY SUNNY SWEENEY Sunny Sweeney, a genre-bending, songwriting spitfire who has spent equal time in the rich musical traditions of Texas and Tennessee, returns with Married Alone, the celebrated singer-songwriter’s fifth studio album and the follow-up to 2017’s critically acclaimed Trophy. Co-produced by beloved Texas musician and larger-than-life personality Paul Cauthen and the Texas Gentlemen’s multi-hyphenate Beau Bedford, Married Alone is Sweeney’s finest work yet, bringing together confessional songwriting, image-rich narratives and no shortage of sonic surprises for a loosely conceptual album about loss and healing. Married Alone began as most of Sweeney’s projects do: with a visit to her deep vault of unreleased songs. Since debuting with Heartbreaker’s Hall of Fame in 2006, Sweeney has been a prolific writer, writing whatever is on her heart rather than with a particular project in mind. That habit afforded her a rich well of material for Married Alone, some of which is over a decade old. “I have a lot of older songs that still make the cut of like, ‘Am I gonna put this on a record?’ And I always start with those songs, songs that have been important to me for whatever reason. And then I try to build around that. It doesn’t necessarily have to be around a theme, but sometimes it turns out to be that there is one.” CAM PIERCE Cam Pierce was born and bred in the West… way West. Born in a tiny logging town in Oregon and growing up in the deep woods of the Southern part of the state. All his time in the forests watching, listening, and being still shaped his spontaneous approach to songwriting. Occasionally as a young adult he recalls becoming discontented with small town life and yearned for the bright lights and fast pace of the city. Though these few fantastic bouts in babylon would present new experiences and test’s for the compass of a young man’s life and spirit. The woods, and the small town living would always call him home. Moving to the growing metropolis of Nashville was not such a means of escape, but one of sacrifice in the hopes of advancing his career in Music and Songwriting. From booking his first festival 1 year after arriving in Nashville, to playing the “Country Music Hall Of Fame” to opening for Sunny Sweeney on tour in 2024 and 2025, cutting the first record at FAME studios infamous Studio “B” after it’s re-opening in 2021; the opportunities that have come Cam’s way are miraculous for a small town boy from Southern Oregon. He’s played with a string of incredibly talented musicians over the years. Like Anthony “Ziggy” Johnson, keys for “Alan Jackson” and “Whispering Bill Anderson”, Mike Klooster, Keys for “Smashmouth”, Chad Gamble and Jimbo Hart both members of “The 400 Unit”. The list goes on and so does the gratitude to such folks for lending their crafts. “When I came to Nashville it wasn’t with friends. I had no contacts, no connections of any kind. I knew no one, and had nothing. It was sheer drive, trust and stupidity. Like a blind man diving into the ocean”.
Nick Shoulders: Universe of Battle Tour
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY NICK SHOULDERS All Bad, the latest album from Nick Shoulders, released via Gar Hole Records (a label founded and co-owned by Shoulders), ultimately encapsulates everything that makes Shoulders’ inimitable form of country music so vital: a heady balance of dazzling musicianship and punk defiance, coupled with gritty eccentricity and a generational connection to the roots of the genre. With a singing style inherited from his family’s vocal lineage, Nick’s songs achieve the rare feat of imparting difficult truths while inciting a certain joyful abandon, balancing a sound forged by years of hard travel with a heartfelt reverence for the origins of country music. In the spirit of Hazel Dickens and Jimmy Driftwood, the incisive yet wildly jubilant All Bad vocally objects to the reckless destruction of the natural landscape and development run rampant, while still offering plenty of joy and dance-ready rhythms. Spanning a variety of early country styles, the album’s infectious harmonies shine alongside everything from jangling cajun waltzes to surf-rock infused bluesy ballads–all tied together by a voice seemingly out of place in this century, yet ever ready to speak up about its problems. Surrounded by a singing style passed down from a time before microphones, Nick’s childhood of bird call whistles and an over-exposure to southern gospel music eventually steered him toward an adolescence drumming for metal and punk bands, and subsequent years as an active illustrator and member of Arkansas’s heavy music scene. After numerous personal calamities and a growing obsession with the rural musical traditions of his lifelong home, Shoulders left the Ozarks and lived out of his van, singing on the street corners of the west while slowly being drawn to the vibrance of the New Orleans dance and busking world. Following the release of ‘Rather Low’ by the popular YouTube channel Western AF, which catapulted Nick’s songs to a vastly wider audience right as Covid-19 and lockdowns ensued, he’s seen rapid ascension into the world of touring music, playing alongside the likes of Sierra Ferrell and at major festivals such as Stagecoach. With the hard rhythms and heavenly melodies of the newest release, All Bad, Shoulders manages to concoct a body of work that is at turns sublimely freewheeling and profoundly illuminating, yet primed to permanently warp the listener’s perspective to glorious effect. CHRIS ACKER In a genre full of tall tales and marketable lies, Chris Acker crafts candid songs – weaving his wit and woes into a body of work that exposes the stale plight of the American Songster to the honest, and sometimes hilarious, light of day.
The Lone Bellow
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY VIP MEET & GREET PACKAGES AVAILABLE INCLUDING: One (1) General Admission ticket, Meet & Greet with The Lone Bellow and photo opportunity, Exclusive pre-show trio performance from the band, Limited edition VIP poster, Commemorative VIP laminate and lanyard, Merch shopping before doors open to the public, Early entry into the venue THE LONE BELLOW With their upcoming sixth studio album, The Lone Bellow embarks on a bold new chapter while honoring the deep bonds that have defined their journey. Written collaboratively for the first time with their full touring band—founding members Zach Williams, Brian Elmquist, and Kanene Pipkin joined by drummer Julian Dorio and multi-instrumentalist Tyler James—the album channels the raw, ecstatic energy of the band’s live show into a dynamic collection of songs that pulse with warmth, honesty, and human connection. Recorded live in Muscle Shoals, AL, after a writing retreat in a converted Kentucky firehouse, the album is both a celebration and a reckoning: of friendship, loss, love, and resilience. From the gritty, Stones-tinged opener “After The Rain” to the soul-stirring closer “That Table,” the record captures the joy and vulnerability that have long defined The Lone Bellow’s sound—lush harmonies, heartfelt lyrics, and genre-blurring arrangements steeped in folk, rock, and gospel. The album’s creation was marked by setbacks, including the theft of early recordings, but the outpouring of support from their fanbase reaffirmed what the band has always known: their music is a shared experience. That spirit echoes throughout the album, whether in anthems like “Common Folk” and “I’m Here For You,” or in intimate reflections like “You Were Leaving” and “Night Goes Black.” Since their acclaimed 2013 debut, The Lone Bellow has appeared on The Tonight Show, Austin City Limits, and The Late Show, topped Americana charts, and headlined storied venues from Carnegie Hall to the Ryman Auditorium. But with their next album, they reaffirm their commitment not just to making music, but to building community—on stage, in song, and around the table.
PATIO: Sugar Lime Blue Duo
– ALL AGES- LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVE SUGAR LIME BLUE DUO The Duo of Ashley and Dave Beth are the heart and soul behind Sugar Lime Blue, a band long known for its genre-defying blend of Americana, blues, folk, and jam-infused rock. Now touring as a duo, the couple has distilled over a decade of musical chemistry, road-tested experience, and deep artistic connection into a raw, intimate performance style that feels both timeless and deeply personal. With Ashley’s powerhouse vocals—earthy, ethereal, and steeped in soul—and Dave’s masterful guitar work and songwriting, the pair has become a living, breathing embodiment of what they call the Cosmic Cowgirl sound: a free-spirited, rootsy fusion of classic storytelling and cosmic grooves.
**LOCATION CHANGE** PHUNCLE SAM at The Grey Eagle
THIS EVENT HAS MOVED AND WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE GREY EAGLE IN THE MUSIC ROOM LOCATED AT 185 CLINGMAN AVE – AVL, NC 28801 ALL AGES STANDING ROOM ONLY PHUNCLE SAM Asheville’s own Dead-Centric “jam band”. Since their formation in 2004, Phuncle Sam has been firmly rooted in musical exploration. The band serves up inventive interpretations of Jerry Garcia, Grateful Dead, and many others. They have built up a faithful following by using an approach that respects the improvisational traditions of The Grateful Dead, while exploring what can happen when individual band members bring their unique influences and interpretations into the mix.
The Castellows: The Homecoming Tour
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY THE CASTELLOWS Neo-Traditional Country music trio, The Castellows, bring a literal meaning to the phrase, “family tradition.” The band comprised of sisters Ellie (lead guitar), Powell (banjo) and Lily (vocals), hail from small rural Georgetown, Georgia, but now call Nashville home. The Castellows’ sound is traditional, yet modern. Authentic, yet harnessed. The common thread among the trio, other than their DNA, is their masterful three-part harmonies which blend together to create one singular, almost angelic, voice. The Castellows’ craft as songwriters is as robust as their voices, which is evident across the trio’s debut EP, A Little Goes A Long Way, which released worldwide on February 9, 2024. The band wrote/co-wrote six of the seven songs that make up the project, with the promise of much more music to come. The band began turning heads of music industry insiders in January 2023. When spring arrived, The Castellows had signed a record deal with Warner Music Nashville & Warner Records, collectively. Wasting no time on pleasantries, The Castellows immediately got to work writing, recording, and performing live. Tapping veteran producer Trina Shoemaker (Sheryl Crow, Nanci Griffith, Queens of the Stone Age), the first fruits of labor to be harvested from 2023 is the debut A Little Goes A Long Way. One year later, the three sisters from a cattle farm in Georgia are still turning heads, touting their first major award-nomination for CMT Digital-First Performance of the Year at the 2024 CMT Music Awards, announcing they’ll hit the road in the fall of 2024 with Little Big Town and Sugarland on the Take Me Home Tour, while also being named a SiriusXM “Highway Find” artist for The Highway (Ch. 56), all the very SAME week. Previously, The Castellows landed on multiple 2024 ‘Watch Lists’ including CMT Next Women of Country, CMT ‘Listen Up,’ Pandora, Country Now, and Nashville Lifestyles’ ‘Five Groups You Need To Know.’ HAYDEN BLOUNT With a distinctly raw, plainspoken form of instinctual song craft, 21-year-old Hayden Blount is the real-deal epitome of a next-gen country outsider, with a growing legion of dedicated fans. And in a world defined by the surface level, he’s got no intentions of changing that up. A committed solo songwriter now earning breakout acclaim, the self-taught talent wields a no-B.S. sound and a drive to cut his own path, with the God’s-honest-truth as his only creative requirement. Because where Blount comes from, a man’s word is still his bond.
John R. Miller w/ Liliana Hudgens
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY JOHN R. MILLER John R Miller is a true hyphenate artist: singer-songwriter-picker. Every song on his thrilling debut solo album, Depreciated, is lush with intricate wordplay and haunting imagery, as well as being backed by a band that is on fire. One of his biggest long-time fans is roots music favorite Tyler Childers, who says he’s “a well-travelled wordsmith mapping out the world he’s seen, three chords at a time.” Miller is somehow able to transport us to a shadowy honkytonk and get existential all in the same line with his tightly written compositions. Miller’s own guitar-playing is on fine display here along with vocals that evoke the white-waters of the Potomac River rumbling below the high ridges of his native Shenandoah Valley. Depreciated is a collection of eleven gems that take us to his homeplace even while exploring the way we can’t go home again, no matter how much we might ache for it. On the album, Miller says he was eager to combine elements of country, folk, blues, and rock to make his own sound. Recently lost heroes like Prine, Walker, and Shaver served as guideposts for the songcrafting but Miller has completely achieved his own sound. The album is almost novelistic in its journey, not only to the complicated relationship Miller has with the Shenandoah Valley but also into the mind of someone going through transitions. “I wrote most of these songs after finding myself single and without a band for the first time in a long while,” Miller says. “I stumbled to Nashville and started to figure things out, so a lot of these have the feel of closing a chapter.” Miller grew up in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia near the Potomac River. “There are three or four little towns I know well that make up the region,” he says, name-checking places like Martinsburg, Shepherdstown, Hedgesville, and Keyes Gap. “It’s a haunted place. In some ways it’s frozen in time. So much old stuff has lingered there, and its history is still very present.” As much as Miller loves where he’s from, he’s always had a complicated relationship with home and never could figure out what to do with himself there. “I just wanted to make music, and there’s no real infrastructure for that there. We had to travel to play regularly and as teenagers most of our gigs were spent playing in old church halls or Ruritan Clubs.” He was raised “kinda sorta Catholic” and although he gave up on that as a teenager, he says “it follows me everywhere, still.” “Music was the first thing to turn my brain on. I’d sit by the stereo for hours with a blank audio cassette waiting to record songs I liked,” he says. “I was into a lot of whatever was on the radio until I was in middle school and started finding out about punk music, which is what I gravitated toward and tried to play through high school.” Not long after a short and aimless attempt at college, I was introduced to old time and traditional fiddle music, particularly around West Virginia, and my whole musical world started to open up.” Around the same time he discovered John Prine and says the music of Steve Earle sent him “down a rabbit hole.” From there he found the 1970s Texas gods like Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff Walker, Billy Joe Shaver, and Blaze Foley, the swamp pop of Bobby Charles, and the Tulsa Sound of J.J. Cale, who is probably his biggest influence. LILIANA HUDGENS
