Will Sheff / Okkervil River
– WITH mmeadows- ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYWILL SHEFF / OKKERVIL RIVER After nine critically acclaimed albums, after twenty bandmates, after countless bars and clubs and theaters and festivals, after two full decades, Will Sheff is letting Okkervil River drift out to sea with Nothing Special, a rich and cinematic collection that marks the acclaimed indie songwriter’s first release under his own name. Written through a period of painful loss and deep transformation and recorded with a mix of old friends and new collaborators (including singer/songwriter Christian Lee Hutson, Dawes drummer Griffin Goldsmith, and Death Cab For Cutie pianist Zac Rae), the record represents more than just a change in name; it’s an act of liberation and self-determination, an emotionally raw reckoning with grief, identity, and hope that blurs the lines between fiction and autobiography, surrealism and humor, stoicism and a deepening spirituality. Formed in Austin, TX, Okkervil River embraced both frenetic rock and cerebral complexity as bandmates came and went over its twenty year run, but the group’s north star always remained firmly fixed in Sheff’s emotional vocals and striking lyrics, which could turn even the most seemingly mundane observations into profound philosophical revelations. NPR hailed the New Hampshire native’s “dazzling” way with words, while Pitchfork declared him “one of indie rock’s most ambitious thinkers,” and The New York Times raved that he “writes like a novelist.” With Nothing Special, Sheff begins his next and most compelling chapter yet.mmeadowsFor musicians Kristin Slipp and Cole Kamen-Green, mmeadows is a means of survival, an outlet to anchor themselves from the currents of life. Fluid and rhythmic, organic and electronic, their singular alt-pop songcraft is the synthesis of complementary talents, mutual trust, and years of partnership. Each brings a distinct background to the sound: Slipp is a current member of Dirty Projectors, with writing and performance credits on their 2020 release 5 EPs. She grew up in Maine, devoting herself to the choir and a true New England-kind of work ethic which has since flourished in New York City’s music community. Kamen-Green has worked with Beyonce, writing and performing horns on Beyonce and Four, as well as projects with Diana Ross, Harry Styles, Laurie Anderson, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Taylor Swift. He came up as a ‘90s kid in lower Manhattan, immersed in the cultures of hip-hop, dance music, and jazz (his uncle is the avant-garde drummer Joey Baron). All the varying hues oftheir influences now filter into Light Moves Around You, the duo’s full-length debut, a dynamic and deeply-honed collection of pop songs that silence chaos and celebrate the tender acts of making space and taking care.
Red Clay Strays: Way Too Long Tour
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYRED CLAY STRAYS With a sound as classic as the crackling of a Sun Records vinyl still spinning somewhere in Memphis, yet as fresh as the musical stylings of the 21st century, The Red Clay Strays are busy making waves with their spellbinding and genre-bending brand of tunes. Reminiscent of the vibrant heyday of southern music, the band finds their origins in the styles of classic country, rockabilly, and gospel-fed soul all the while ushering in a new era of rock-and-roll that is as distinctive as the men who form it. Born and bred in the red dirt clay of south Alabama, Brandon Coleman (lead vocals/guitar), Drew Nix (vocals/electric guitar/harmonica), Zach Rishel (electric guitar), Andrew Bishop (bass) and John Hall (drums), blended their unique individualities and influences together to create a band with a rare sincerity that is not often seen in today’s industry. They have spent the past five years cutting their teeth in the Gulf Coast music scene while simultaneously running the roads discovering who they are and where they belong in the world as they plant roots in towns big and small across the country by burning down every stage they step on—proverbially, of course. Their high-energy, emotive stage presence is as lively as their melodies, though they possess an uncanny knack for tuning into their softer side when the song warrants it. Whether the song has listeners tapping their toes and shaking their hips as in previous singles such as “Good Godly Woman” and “Doin’ Time,” or tugging on the heartstrings in ballads like “Wondering Why” and “Heavy Heart” off their upcoming debut album, the band displays their penchant for storytelling in any song they sing. For The Red Clay Strays, music is simply a way of life—they eat, sleep, live, and breathe it—which is emphasized by their passionate artistic integrity as there is evidently nowhere else they would rather be. At best, they are well on their way to being America’s next big thing, but at the heart of the matter they’re just five guys from Mobile, Alabama who want to play their music and fellowship with people while they do it.Meg McRee After attending Vanderbilt University on a full academic scholarship, Meg McRee traded her newly earned degree for the pursuit of an unpredictable dream as a songwriter. After a few years of waitressing at The Listening Room and nannying in between co-writes, McRee was validated as more than a driven idealist with the signing of her first publishing deal at Hang Your Hat, a creative joint venture with Concord Music Publishing and hit-songwriter Hillary Lindsey. Since, her musical prowess has earned her cuts with Grace Potter, Elle King, Caylee Hammack, Paul Cauthen, Carter Faith, Ben Chapman, Lauren Watkins, Harper O’Neill and more. As she proved her chops in the writing room, McRee toured singing background vocals and playing fiddle with Ben Chapman and Hailey Whitters before making the leap into her own artistic journey with the recording and release of her debut record Is It Just Me?, an album founded upon pleasantly unpredictable melodies, inquisition, and warm-hearted poetry that will make your feelings make sense.
Rooster at The Outpost
– ALL AGES- THE OUTPOST (521 AMBOY RD)- FREE / $10 SUGGESTED DONATION AT DOORROOSTERAsheville band Rooster is Annie Myers and Erin Kinard and was formed in 2016 around a campfire, but the two had performed separately for many years prior. Since then, they have performed throughout Western North Carolina, creating new songs and arrangements of beloved Americana. They perform an energetic combination of folk country and classic Americana, driven by their powerful vocal harmony and soulful drum/guitar instrumentation. Rooster’s debut album ‘Bloodroot’ was recorded in Swannanoa in 2019, released in March of 2020 and made it on WNCW’s top 100 albums of that year. Their orchestrations are clean and uncluttered, but with a raw, gritty edge. They seem right at home in a coffee house, wine bar, brew pub, honky-tonk or at a backyard barbecue.
Dave Desmelik at The Outpost
– ALL AGES- THE OUTPOST (521 AMBOY RD)- FREE / $10 SUGGESTED DONATION AT DOORDAVE DESMELIK “A superb example of all that is good in Roots/Americana music today.” -lonesomehighway.com Dave Desmelik is a singer-songwriter and instrumentalist whose musical focus is on original compositions. What attracts listeners to Desmelik’s tunes, old and new, is the element of authenticity incorporated in them. There is no sugar coating involved. His songs are not wrapped in false smiles, rather they are stark and open and tend to settle on the pulse of everyday life. An unclosed and evolving journal of thoughts set to music and melodies in prose and instrumental performance. If you listen to Dave Desmelik’s songs, whether lyrical or instrumental, you may become pleasantly fixed in the simplistic realness of them and if you hear Desmelik in a live setting you may realize that there are no tricks, just a genuine venture into the highs and lows of life.
Alex Krug Combo: Alex’s Bday and the combo’s single release party at The Outpost
– ALL AGES- THE OUTPOST (521 AMBOY RD)- FREE / $10 SUGGESTED DONATION AT DOORALEX KRUG COMBO Life is at its very core about exploring. We can remain stagnant and rooted in place, or we can take a page out of Alex Krug Combo’s playbook and dive headfirst. The thrill of adventure looms ahead of this band. Their Psychedelic Smoky Mountain Americana strikes a stunningly evocative chord about life, being an outsider and the kind of heartache and healing that transforms your soul.
12Eleven at The Outpost
– ALL AGES- THE OUTPOST (521 AMBOY RD)- FREE / $10 SUGGESTED DONATION AT DOOR12Eleven12Eleven is a collaborative project that was formed in the Southeast United States in the spring of 2019. Originally music students, Daniel Alvarado (Guitar) Eric McCauley (E-Macc, Lead vocals/Sax) Denver Wallace (Bass) & Pierce Gilmore (Drums) began performing together at local venues in their college town of Troy, Alabama. That summer, 12Eleven was introduced to the Florida panhandle as it began to expand out of central Alabama. The soulful R&B and Pop was a refreshing take for an area used to a different style. After gaining experience playing a high-volume schedule in the panhandle, 12Eleven began self-producing its first official project in 2020. On March 17th, 12Eleven dropped “You Up?”, its debut single. 12Eleven’s newest single will be released July 28th, 2022.
The Lil Smokies
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYTHE LIL SMOKIES Blending virtuosic instrumental acrobatics with riveting lyrical craftsmanship, The Lil Smokies have earned a reputation as one of the most electrifying acts in modern American roots music thanks to their exhilarating live show and critically acclaimed studio output. Since forming on the streets of Missoula, Montana, where the group got its start busking back in 2009, the band has performed everywhere from Red Rocks to The Rialto and captivated festival audiences at Telluride, High Sierra, LOCKN’, Freshgrass, FloydFest, and countless more. Their latest album, 2020’s Tornillo, showcases the hard touring five-piece at its most adventurous, teaming up with producer Bill Reynolds (The Avett Brothers, Band Of Horses) for a genre-bending joyride from the hills of Laurel Canyon to the wide-open deserts of West Texas. The Lil Smokies are: Andy Dunnigan – Dobro, Vocals Matthew Rieger – Guitar, Vocals Jake Simpson – Fiddle, Vocals Jean-Luc Davis – Upright Bass Caleb Dostal – BanjoTWO RUNNERTwo Runner is Paige Anderson and Emilie Rose. The American Roots duo from Northern California embody the hills they grew up in. Through the mediums of clawhammer banjo, flatpicking guitar, vocal harmonies, and oldtime fiddle, Two Runner puts a hip take on the Appalachian feel.
Deserta
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYDESERTAFor Matthew Doty, Deserta has always been about exploring a sonic universe that allows him to express a kaleidoscope of emotions, without having to say much at all. Through a patchwork of reverb-tinged textures – drone guitars, lingering synths and driving percussion – the Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist weaves together stories of care, frustration and catharsis that ultimately stretch to a gentle resolve. On new album Every Moment, Everything You Need, Doty chronicles the kind of year we all fear, full of uncertainty, tension and sustained pressure, and transforms it into a celebration of perseverance. It’s an essential reminder that we have the power to shape the stories we tell. The LP was mixed by Dave Fridmann (Tame Impala, Mogwai, Interpol), with Beach House and Slowdive producer Chris Coady engineering and co-producing. Cor de LuxCOR DE LUX grew out of the music scene of North Carolina’s Outer Banks in 2018. The band found each other over a by chance conversation about a love of music between its two founding members (guitarist Tim Lusk, and guitarist and vocalist, Dawn Moraga) while Moraga waited for a phone repair in Tim’s shop. This turned out to be the catalyst for their band’s formation, with John Bliven quickly added on bass and Thomas McNeely stepping in for founding member and drummer Dana Quinn in early 2022. Their music (a mixture of post-punk, goth-tinged pop and shoegaze) has earned the tongue-in-cheek nickname ‘Shoe-Gazi’ by friends.
Jordy Searcy
– ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYJORDY SEARCYJordy Searcy is a Louisiana born, Nashville sharpened singer/songwriter, known across the country for jaw-dropping lyrics, stunning vocals, and intricate guitar work – all packaged in intimate authenticity and approachable hooks & production. With over 700 shows under his belt, over 1,000 songs written including cuts & co-writes with arena-sized artists, an appearance on The Voice, and over 51 million streams on his own music, Jordy has made quite the mark for an artist with only two album releases.In February 2020, one month before the world shut down, Jordy released “Love? Songs” – his debut full-length album packed with the lyrical and emotional depth of Randy Newman and the pop mastery and ingenuity of Olivia Rodrigo. Shows in major markets were selling out, and apromising album cycle was about to bloom. Then, as we know, the entertainment and touring industry came to a halt. Jordy responded in the only way he knew how, by converting his touring van into his home, and driving down the California coast from Oregon to San Diego to surf and write a new album.Three hundred and eighty-seven songs later, the resulting record “Daylight” is his most exciting, mature, and adventurous work to date-with influences like Paul Simon, Pinegrove, Taylor Swift’s “Folklore” album, and Phoebe Bridgers. The album maintains a theme of gleaminggoodness from hard situations. “This is the hardest I’ve ever worked on an album. I think this really is the record I’ve been trying to make since l first started writing songs, and I believe in these songs so much.”With the Tik Tok-viral lead single “Molly” earning over 100k streams and major Spotify playlist support in its first week, the upcoming album promises excitement with each new song. It’s not all internet hype though. Jordy played 40+ shows on his Fall 2021 tour, complete with pin-dropVIP experience acoustic sets and high energy light shows.Daylight will be out one song at a time, releasing in full in Spring 2022 accompanied by incredible live shows in most major markets. For Jordy, things seem to only look brighter from here.JULIANNA ZACHARIOUIt is not uncommon for Julianna Zachariou to hear something like “I am a giant music critic and am very hard to convince, and I just love what you do.” It’s kind of her M.O. — she can show up to any room and make strangers collect themselves into a focused and eager audience. Though she is an accomplished songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and music producer, Julianna boasts that her biggest gift is simply her ability to understand and connect with others. Julianna Zachariou’s newest record, “Hero of Your Heart” is joyfully disarming and now streaming wherever you listen to music. She is based in San Diego with her dog, Goose, and her partner Becka.
Nikki Lane: Denim and Diamonds Tour
– WITH DRAYTON FARLEY- ALL AGES- STANDING ROOM ONLYNIKKI LANENikki Lane’s stunning third album Highway Queen sees the young Nashville singer emerge as one of country and rock’s most gifted songwriters. Co-produced by Lane and fellow singer-songwriter, Jonathan Tyler, this emotional tour-de-force was recorded at Matt Pence’s Echo Lab studio in Denton, Texas as well as at Club Roar with Collin Dupuis in Nashville, Tennessee. Blending potent lyrics, unbridled blues guitars and vintage Sixties country-pop swagger, Lane’s new music will resonate as easily with Lana Del Rey and Jenny Lewis fans as those of Neil Young and Tom Petty.Highway Queen is a journey through heartbreak that takes exquisite turns. The record begins with a whiskey-soaked homage to Lane’s hometown (“700,000 Rednecks”) and ends on the profoundly raw “Forever Lasts Forever,” where Lane mourns a failed marriage — the “lighter shade of skin” left behind from her wedding ring. “Love is the most unavoidable thing in the world,” Lane says. “The person you pick could be half set-up to destroy your life with their own habits — I’ve certainly experienced that before and taken way too long to get out of that mistake.””Becoming a songwriter is one of the most selfish things I’ve ever done,” Lane says plainly. She describes writing her first song at age 25 like it was a necessary act of self-preservation after a devastating breakup. Many of her early songs, she said on Shame and Nothin,’ were about the fleetingness of relationships she believed were permanent, she says. Lane’s main line of work in those days was a fashion entrepreneur (she’s currently the owner of Nashville’s vintage clothing boutique High Class Hillbilly). It brought her to cities around the country, New York to Los Angeles to Nashville. And like a true wanderer, Lane’s sound crisscrosses musical genres with ease, while the lonesome romantic in her remains. Even a soft song like, “Send The Sun,” with its lilting downward strum, is flush with bittersweet emotion. “Darling, we’re staring at the same moon,” Lane sings lovingly. “I used to say that to my ex,” she says with cheerful stoicism, “to try to brighten the long nights, stay positive.”DRAYTON FARLEYAlabama native Drayton Farley has as honest a voice as you’re likely to hear in this burgeoning scene of country, folk, roots, and Americana music we’re all wrapped up in. With songs and lyrics pulled from real life experience, there’s a grounded feeling to his stories, a confessional quality that rings true to those who know. His voice fills the room like cigarette smoke, curling into every corner of you, with a fine grit rasp that smooths out every rough edge. It lingers hours, days, after you’ve left the bar – turns of phrase that tumble around your mind, bittersweet and familiar. He sings as deeply about the love he holds as the love he’s lost and there’s something so broken-in and comfortable about that Southern inflection that every song feels like coming home. Sharing stages with musicians on the rise such as Zach Bryan, Arlo McKinley and Mike and the Moonpies, Drayton has quickly gained a loyal fan base.
