Nick Shoulders
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY NICK SHOULDERS Refugia Blues, the fifth album from songwriter Nick Shoulders, is a record of big ideas and small, intimate moments. Rooted in the acoustic stylings of Southern traditional music, it finds the Arkansas native turning off his amp and stepping up to a ribbon microphone as a solo performer, singing in a voice that’s equal parts country croon, Appalachian yodel, and high-lonesome field holler. Shoulders’ interpretation of American roots music has always been more progressive and punky than the trucks-and-beers conservatism that passes for modern-day country, and Refugia Blues offers songs about climate collapse, radical anthropology, and generative disruption. It balances the macro with the micro, too, making room for love songs and personal topics, packaging humor alongside heavy insights. At once academic and accessible, Refugia Blues isn’t just a deep dive into southernness, but also into Shoulders himself. This is a raw, resolute version of American country music, stacked high with songs that go down easy but linger in the minds of those willing to invest the time.
J & The Causeways
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY J & THE CAUSEWAYS New Orleans soul/rock powerhouse ensemble J & The Causeways debut album, Motions, conjures a universal theme of togetherness and compassion — melodies and lyrics cultivated with a keen understanding of reaching one another through healing and transcendence. Singer and keyboardist Jordan Anderson leads with a soaring level of octave prowess and sonic range akin to that of other renowned soul acts like St. Paul & The Broken Bones or Brittany Howard. Captured by famed musicians/producers Robert Mercurio and Ben Ellman (both members of NOLA cosmic funk outfit Galactic) at Studio in the Country and Esplanade Studios, Motions is a record soaked in the freewheelin’ ethos and sonic tones of a vibrant city that Anderson proudly calls home.
Land Of The Sky Burlesque Festival: “Geektastic Revue”
-AGES 18+-SEATED SHOW “Geektastic” is a burlesque show for NERDS! Performers pay homage to fandoms from comics, TV, film, books and more!!! The opening night of the Land of the Sky Burlesque Festival! *Weekend passes and VIP available here >>> landoftheskyburlesque.com
Land of the Sky Burlesque Festival: “Burlesque Brunch”
-AGES 18+-SEATED SHOW Welcome to the most dazzling brunch experience in Asheville! Closing out the Land of the Sky Festival weekend with tantalizing tastes and titillating performances. A feast for the senses, where laughter, glamour and allure collide. Join us afternoon of tacos and tassels!*Weekend passes and VIP available here >>> landoftheskyburlesque.com
The Deslondes w/ Jojo Harnish and Desiree Cannon
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY THE DESLONDES When the Deslondes recorded their new covers album, they didn’t want to simply exalt their heroes and catalog their influences. They wanted to give their friends a boost as well. The poignant and powerful Don’t Let It Die Vol. 1 includes new interpretations of old songs by artists who’ve guided the band for years, including Swamp Dogg, Johnny Cash, and Clifton Chenier, alongside new songs by peers, tourmates, and collaborators, including Nick Woods, Pat Reedy, and the Kernel. “We have so many friends who are songwriters, and we just love their music so much,” says John James Tourville, who plays guitar and occasionally the fiddle. “Riley and Dan are always kicking around awesome, inspiring old songs for us to do, but for this album we really wanted to do some friend songs, too.” Don’t Let It Die maps out a community of likeminded musicians given to hopping trains, crowding tour vans, and blurring the lines between styles and scenes. “These songs are very much a close part of our lives,” says Riley Downing, who sings and usually plays guitar. “They’re all part of our circle, this big organism that keeps influencing itself. It’s mysterious, though, which musicians get heard and which ones don’t. I think we’re in a good position to tip our cap to the friends we look up to, and hopefully it will benefit our buddies. Hopefully this album will encourage people to go down those rabbit holes.” JOJO HARNISH Born and raised in Lancaster County, PA Jojo Harnish is a singer-songwriter that currently resides in Asheville, NC. DESIREE CANNON Desiree Cannon is a California-based country-folk musician, who sings lonesome songs about love, truth and imagination.
Chris Acker and the Growing Boys w/ Creekbed Carter Hogan
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY CHRIS ACKER & THE GROWING BOYS In a genre full of tall tales and marketable lies, New Orleans’ 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. In the tradition of Guthrie and Prine, Chris lends a quavering voice to the half-rotten romance of the unremarkable and unrefined. Regardless if you’re sitting by a backyard fire on a muggy Louisiana night or standing stage-side in some far flung town, when you hear Chris Acker playing, you’re hearing the end result of countless hours of observing the masters of the craft…and the end result of repeating their mistakes. From the folk revival through the golden age of country music, deafened by punk shows and brass bands alike, Chris’s songwriting is a nod to the absurd yet muted brilliance that inhabits the molded corners of the bars he patrons and cratered street he treads, paired with a pained honesty that merits a long second look. Acker released his fourth full-length album, Famous Lunch, on Gar Hole Records in October of 2024. Famous Lunch contains some of his best work yet: laid back, country-rockers like “Wouldn’t Do For You (Buddy)” and “Shit Surprise” (which Paste Magazine called a “song of the year contender” in 2024), a few raucous, bar-ready joints like “Don’t You Know (Who I Think I Am)” and “Bunn Machine”, and tender, folky triumphs like “Stubborn Eyes” and “Eyelash”, all showcasing Chris’ gift of building “vivid scenes at an impressively low word count” (No Depression). Acker tours solo or with his band The Growing Boys — Zach Thomas (bass), Nikolai Shveitser (pedal steel), Dave Hammer (guitar, vocals), Sam Gelband (drums, vocals), and occasionally Howe Pearson (piano). CREEKBED CARTER HOGAN For trans folksinger Creekbed Carter Hogan, everything good is made from the rotten stump of something else. It’s a theme they’ve become familiar with as they’ve made a life weaving stories of growing up religious around songs that pierce the soul, tickle the funny bone, and showcase a unique blend of self-taught folk picking and queer mayhem. Creekbed Carter, out with Gar Hole Records on March 22 2024, is Hogan at their most confident. Deftly crafted with folk sensibilities, country swagger, and a power emanating from the force of their own desires, their new self-titled album is both creed and archive: a defiant declaration of survival and solidarity in an otherwise limited world.
Midnight North
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY MIDNIGHT NORTH Midnight North takes its cue from the fertile Bay Area music scene. Formed in early 2012 by singer/songwriters Grahame Lesh and Elliott Peck, whose harmonies came as naturally as the initial songs, along with bassist Connor O’Sullivan. The band’s current-day lineup was completed when drummer/banjo player Nathan Graham came aboard after a chance meeting at a benefit concert in Philadelphia in 2016 following the release of its third, and breakthrough album, Under the Lights, in 2017. In the early days, the group was able to grow as a unit thanks to an association with Lesh’s family venue, Terrapin Crossroads in San Rafael, California. Diamonds in the Zodiac – on the Americana Vibes label – is Midnight North’s fifth studio album (along with three live discs), representing a continuation of the musical direction on 2021’s There’s Always a Story. The title comes from the unearthed Robert Hunter lyrics for “Jupiter,” one of two extended tracks on an album — the other, Grahame’s opening “Questions.” Other than those two, Diamonds is increasingly song-oriented and steeped in bluegrass, country, soul, blues, funk, jazz and gospel – a true Americana melting pot. It also turned into a real, second-generation family affair, as it was produced by the band’s dear friend Amy Helm, daughter of The Band’s Levon Helm and singer/songwriter Libby Titus, and features Grahame’s dad Phil and brother Brian. “Things have come full circle in that it was meeting Amy and Levon Helm at a Ramble in the Barn that gave my parents the inspiration to open Terrapin Crossroads, and having Terrapin was so instrumental in the band’s development. And now Amy produced this album and shepherded these songs to their ultimate form,” said Grahame. Diamonds was mixed by D. James Goodwin, who has worked with such luminaries as Bob Weir, the Hold Steady, The National, Goose, and Bonny Light Horseman among many others. Micah Nelson, aka Particle Kid, and Willie’s son, did the honors on the album cover artwork, using acrylic paint mixed with floetrol poured on wood. Recorded at Dave Schools’ (Widespread Panic) Spacecamp in Occidental, California, Diamond in the Zodiac’s 10 tracks represent a truly collaborative effort, featuring band members playing different instruments and many friends & collaborators stopping by the studio to contribute to the music and the vibe. Phil & Brian Lesh, Jason Crosby, and TJ Kanczuzewski all contributed significant moments, and all of the focus was on pulling the best version of the song out of the ensemble.
Joshua Ray Walker
ALL AGESSTANDING ROOM ONLY JOSHUA RAY WALKER Joshua Ray Walker is a Dallas-born Country/Americana songwriter known for vivid, character-driven storytelling and a rich tenor that blends classic Texas tradition with a modern emotional edge. Since his 2019 debut, he has built a catalog defined by sharp writing, dark humor, and deep empathy for complicated people, earning national television appearances, multiple Grand Ole Opry performances, and more than 2,000 shows across the U.S. and Europe. His sixth studio album, Ain’t Dead Yet, marks his most personal chapter to date. Recorded before, during, and after cancer treatment, (including sessions the day before lung surgery that could have permanently altered his voice), the record wrestles with mortality, gratitude, memory, and transformation. Sonically rooted in pedal steel, fiddle, and Walker’s signature guitar picking, it captures an artist confronting uncertainty with defiance , clarity, and hard-won joy. Across every release, from early character portraits to ambitious concept records, Walker’s through-line remains the same: songs that tell the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. On Ain’t Dead Yet, he expands that hallmark into his most personal chapter yet, documenting a profound period of change and a hard-won second chance.
PATIO SHOW: Swift Silver
– ALL AGES- LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVESWIFT SILVER Swift Silver is the musical partnership of Anna Kline and John Looney. For 15 years, they’ve cultivated a sound drawn from the well of Southern soul, blues, and Appalachian roots music. Anchored by Anna’s vivid lyrics and John’s masterful arrangements, Swift Silver’s songcraft stays true to the place that made them. As artists in the Kentucky Arts Council Performing Arts Directory, the duo shares their Southern sound widely, including international appearances such as Your Roots Are Showing in Killarney, Ireland. Swift Silver has appeared at major festivals across the region and abroad, performing at MerleFest, Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion, Master Musicians Festival, Suwannee Springfest, Sleeping in the Woods Songwriter Festival, and CountryFest in Belgium. Their music has also been featured on the Travel Channel’s Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern and ESPN’s True South (Season 5). Both artists remain deeply connected to the Appalachian music community, regularly collaborating with musicians across the region in songwriting, touring, and studio work. Anna’ssongs and poetry were featured in the 2025 Women of Appalachia Project anthology, and she co-wrote “Last Mule in the Holler” with Montana Hobbs of The Local Honeys. John has toured and recorded with artists including John R. Miller, The Local Honeys, Wayne Graham, and Carla Gover. Swift Silver is a torchbearer of Kentucky’s musical legacy and a powerful voice in Appalachia’s musical evolution. They are preparing to release a new album in 2026.
FREE PATIO SHOW: Stella Hansen
– FREE SHOW – ALL AGES- LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVE STELLA HANSENStella Hansen, a Nashville native, embodies the sound of her hometown. Starting when she was just 4 years old, she would accompany her dad on his lunch break to the classic honky tonk, Robert’s Western World. This is one of the places she first fell in love with music. Stella grew up surrounded by the sweet sounds of traditional country music and old time alike. She often attended the square dances in her neighborhood and became entranced by the vibrant sound of the fiddles and banjos. Although let it be noted as a mandolin maker’s daughter, the mandolin will always be near and dear to her heart. This musical foundation pulled her towards the local two step dance halls in Nashville, where as a young adult, her passion was reignited. Stella Hansen’s long-awaited debut EP, Going to Portland, out now, captures the raw emotions of leaving home for the first time. It’s a snapshot, written when Stella was just 18, offering a rare glimpse into the earliest stages of adulthood and self-discovery. The track list follows the order in which the songs were written, allowing listeners to grieve, contemplate loneliness, and find closure alongside Stella. Spanning a full year of writing but distilled into just 20 minutes, the EP takes the listener on an intimate journey.