Town Mountain & The Larry Keel Experience Play Isis for 4th Annual Holiday Benefit on Sat 12/19

4th Annual Holiday Town Mountain Benefit
with The Larry Keel Experience on Saturday, December 19th
at Isis Restaurant and Music Hall
An annual event that helps provide much needed hunger relief for 1 in 6  of our WNC neighbors, with partial proceeds going to MANNA FoodBank

Town Mountain hosts their 4th Annual Holiday Benefit on Saturday, December 19, 2015 at Isis Music Hall and will be joined by The Larry Keel Experience for the occasion! Tickets for the concert are on sale now and the event typically sells out, so get your tickets early. Doors at 8pm, show at 9pm, $20. 743 Haywood Road, Asheville, NC 28806. More info at www.isisasheville.com

Starting in 2012, local bluegrass ambassadors, Town Mountain, decided they wanted to initiate an annual holiday concert to help fight local hunger. Each year since, they have teamed up with another band and host Isis Restaurant and Music Hall to throw a holiday party featuring some of the best local and regional pickers rotating on stage throughout the evening. In sum total, the Holiday Benefit Concert has raised $7,500 enough money to provide food for 22,500 meals through MANNA FoodBank.

“The WNC music community has always been a strong support system for our work at MANNA FoodBank, whether it is through supporting our special events, our mission, or by raising money to end hunger in Western North Carolina. Over the past three years, this event has helped us provide the food for over 19,500 meals!” MANNA FoodBank says, “When our community works together – a business providing the space for an event, musicians providing entertainment and a reason for gathering, and the people buying tickets to support it – we can accomplish so much. Thank you to every individual who makes this possible. With your help, we can end hunger in WNC.”

Town Mountain’s banjo player and founding member Jesse Langlais decided that he wanted to make this an annual event because of the band’s ties to the area and their desire to give back to the place that has helped launch their music careers. In addition to providing the space free of charge as host of the event, Isis Music Hall has also waived many production costs and been generous enough to donate both in kind and cash contributors to the event each year in order to facilitate the event’s success.

“The need to provide a hot meal and shelter to those in need is ever present. Not only is it something we need to be aware of 365 days a year, it’s something that always stands out around the holiday season,” says Langlais. “This year, partial proceeds will be going to MANNA FoodBank, who work to help 1 in 6 people facing food insecurity in Western North Carolina.”

“We are honored to be part of this annual funding raising event that brings together musicians and community to provide for those that are less fortunate.” Isis’s owner Scott Woody says, “We deeply appreciate the efforts of FATE (Josh Stack) and MANNA for all that they do.”

Town Mountain will have some new tunes to ring in the season! They recorded an impromptu set of two of their favorite songs from the Grateful Dead’s catalog, “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo” and “Big River” at the widely acclaimed Echo Mountain Recording Studios in their hometown of Asheville, NC. The disc is called The Dead Session and comes out on November 13th. This is the Grateful Dead done in Town Mountain’s hard drivin’ style filled with a honky tonk edge and barroom swagger. They will put out their next studio album, produced and engineered by GRAMMY winner Dirk Powell, in 2016. Town Mountain is Robert Greer on vocals and guitar, Jesse Langlais on banjo and vocals, Bobby Britt on fiddle, Phil Barker on mandolin and vocals, and Adam Chaffins on bass.

The Larry Keel Experience will also be playing some new tunes for the celebration from their upcoming album due out in 2016. Larry Keel, widely known as a guitar legend and master fisherman, is an innovative and original acoustic flatpicking guitarist that had broken ground in the genre. Always offering an exhilarating performance, The Larry Keel Experience features Will Lee on soulful, blues-grass 5 string banjo, penetrating vocals, along with exceptional songwriting contributions, and Jenny Keel on upright bass with her impeccable timing along with solid and imaginative bass lines and vocal harmonies.

For more info please visit www.isisasheville.com, www.TownMountain.net, and www.larrykeel.com. For more about MANNA FoodBank please visit  www.mannafoodbank.org .

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The 2nd Annual Atlanta’s Holiday Hootenanny at the Variety Playhouse on Sun, Dec 16th

The 2nd Annual Atlanta’s Holiday Hootenanny at the Variety Playhouse
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Showtime: 7PM, doors @ 6PM. Tickets: $20 adv/$25 dos.
On sale now through Ticketmaster and the Variety Playhouse box office. All ages.
www.variety-playhouse.com/event/tdawg-presents-the-2nd-annual-holiday-hootenanny

TDawg Presents is excited to bring you the 2nd edition of what is turning into an annual tradition of spontaneous jams amongst friends celebrating the holiday season the only way it should be done. Featuring recording artists from original legendary Capricorn Records bands Wet Willie and (Rock & Roll Hall of fame inductees) The Allman Brothers Band, The 7 Walkers, as well as members of Grammy winning The Derek Trucks Band, The Tedeschi Trucks Band, Col. Bruce Hampton & The Aquarium Rescue Unit, Blueground Undergrass, The Mosier Brothers Band, Atlanta favorites Deep Blue Sun & The Whiskey Gentry, and many more, the 2nd Annual Atlanta’s Holiday Hootenanny is certainly raising the ante from last year’s inaugural event that tore the roof off of the Variety Playhouse.

The roster of musicians is an A-list of Atlanta-area musicians and influential regional and national acts: New Orleans icon and 7 Walkers front-man Papa Mali, Col. Bruce Hampton, Ret., who recently received the Governor’s Award for the Arts & Humanities, Allman Brothers Band bassist Oteil Burbridge, flat-pick master Larry Keel, Wet Willie front-man Jimmy Hall, The Mosier Brothers, Grammy-winner Count M’Butu, Hammond B3 legend Ike Stubblefield, Grant Green Jr., Jeff Sipe, Deep Blue Sun, Gaurav Malhotra, Rurik Nunan plus more surprise guests! The performance will have three distinct sets that feature unique combinations of artists, bringing out the best in each jam and leaving plenty of room within a little bit of structure for a lot of spontaneity.

This year’s 2nd Annual Atlanta’s Holiday Hootenanny is proud to have additional support from local music school Music on Main Street, Tree Leaf Music/Tree Sound Studios, and Wildman Steve Radio.

TDawg Presents founder Thomas Helland (aka TDawg) started as TDawg’s Productions in 1998, and is the creator of the nationally known Blue Ridge HarvestFest, a 3-day camping festival that ended its run in 2005, as well as the current run of TDawg’s Back Porch Hootenanny series at Cherokee Farms in northwest Georgia since 2006. Over the last 14 years, TDawg has remained a true cultivator- a music farmer- of American and international roots music stretching from bluegrass and Americana to funk, jazz, blues and jam bands and is excited to collaborate once again with organic label Tree Leaf Music, a subsidiary of 100% sustainable Tree Sound Studios, to create this fine gathering of old friends and magnificent musicians, all tied into one package for The 2nd Annual Atlanta’s Holiday Hootenanny.

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Larry Keel Wishes You a Merry Christmas!

Have a very Keel Christmas Yawl!

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Some Holiday Magic: B-boy Santa Sneak Attack in Asheville, NC

This video rocks! A dancing Santa b-boy is on the loose in Asheville, North Carolina and he’s looking to start a hip hop, break dance holiday flash mob. Did he succeed? Watch him sneak up and surprise visitors with head spins, flares and seriously fresh break dancing moves at the Pritchard Park Drum Circle, Pack Square, Asheville Visitors Center, Lexington Avenue Brewery, The Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa, National Gingerbread House Competition, The Orange Peel and America’s Largest Home, Biltmore.

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The Blind Tiger Celebrates Grand Opening of New Location this New Years’ Eve with Instrumental Powerhouse Toubab Krewe

The Blind Tiger announces the grand opening of its NEW 1819 Spring Garden Street location with a special New Years’ Eve performance headlined by instrumental powerhouse Toubab Krewe who is touring in support of their new album TK2. The event is presented by Greenefields Productions.  Doors for the Friday, December 31st celebration will open at 8pm with the new venue boasting of a higher capacity of 480, free parking, larger bathrooms and 5000 sq feet . The Jonathan Scales Fourchestra opens the show with music at 9pm. Ticket packages are $20 and include one ticket to the show, champagne toast, & complimentary hor d’oeuvres. They are available at www.theblindtiger.com

Click for more on TK2

The Blind Tiger’s grand opening celebration will be headlined by Asheville-based Toubab Krewe. Formed in 2005, Toubab Krewe has tenaciously honed their craft through relentless touring and a fierce dedication to carving out something they can truly call their own. The fruits of this hard work can be heard on their scintillating new long-player, TK2, out now on Nat Geo Music.

Some music cannot be found on a map or within iTunes categories. Some music is so original it seems snatched from the great, invisible substrata that runs below all human activity, a sound aching to be born without a flag or fixed allegiance– free, questing, overflowing with immediate, tangible life. This is the music of Toubab Krewe, the vibrant Asheville, NC-based instrumental powerhouse that creates a sonic Pangaea that lustily swirls together rock, African traditions, jam sensibilities, international folk strains and more. While nearly impossible to put into any box, it takes only a few moments to realize in a very palpable way that one is face-to-face with a true original who recognizes no borders in a march towards a muscular, original, globally switched-on sound.

What Justin Perkins (Kora, Kamelngoni, guitar, percussion), Teal Brown (drums, congas), Drew Heller (guitar, piano, fiddle), David Pransky (bass, guitar), and Luke Quaranta (Djembe, percussion) have wrought on TK2 reflects the many miles and musical journeys that have transpired since their studio debut.

The NYE pairing of Toubab Krewe with Jonathan Scales Fourchestra is sure to be an unforgettable occasion.  Jonathan Scales is a Steel Pan player who brings a whole new sense of vitality to this traditionally Caribbean instrument.  Here you have a classically trained composer turned steel pan maestro, heavily influenced by sounds from banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck to rapper Jay-Z . . . It’s a whole new concoction with a jazz edge classical sensibility, that has been described as “joyously inventive” by the Jazz Times. Check them out in the video below:

Purchase tickets for this New Year’s Eve Celebration online here.

Toubab Krewe NYE 2010-2011
Grand Opening of The Blind Tiger
Jonathan Scale Fourchestra opens
Friday, December 31st

$20, doors 8pm, show 9pm
336-272-9888
1819 Spring Garden St
Greensboro, NC 27403
www.theblindtiger.com

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Annual Acoustic Syndicate Christmas Shows in Charlotte at the Visulite on Dec 17th & 18th!

Acoustic Syndicate is excited to announce that they will be returning to the Visulite Theater in Charlotte, NC on December 17th & 18th for their annual holiday show! Joining them will be very special guest & long time friend and collaborator, Jeremy Saunders on saxophones! That being said, the mix of the McMurry Clan, Jay Sanders on bass, Saunders on sax, and Syndicate’s newest addition to the group, Billy Cardine on dobro, along with all the new tunes… This show is going to ROCK!

Here’s a nice video featuring Saunders on Sax from the Visulite in 2007:

Now imagine that with Cardine’s blistering dobro for the first time ever and you’ve got two historical Syndicate nights!

…And to think it all began from a simple Chritmas gift in December of1977 when Joe and Fitzhugh McMurry, a couple of brothers from Cleveland County, NC got together and decided to get their kids bluegrass instruments for Christmas that year. The kids were brothers Fitz Jr. and Bryon McMurry, and their cousin Steve McMurry. Fitzie, as he was known back then, got a Gibson Hummingbird guitar. Bryon got an Eagle banjo and Steve got a fiddle from Sears & Roebuck. All were excited and happy.

Skip forward some years, lots of parties, & lots of bars later and in 1994 the band caught the attention of Steve Metcalf of the world famous Green Acres Music Hall, in Bostic, NC. He featured them at “The Acres” on a couple of big bills like David Grisman and Bela Fleck. In 1997, the Syndicate added Nashville bassist, Jay Sanders, formerly of the Snake Oil Medicine Show to their line up to complete the Syndicate core. In 2001 Syndicate added Jeremy Saunders on saxophones. The rest is a matter of record.

Acoustic Syndicate plays on with its message of peace, earth, unity and family. Come on out and celebrate the holidays with friends & family at the Visulite for 2 nights in December!

Show Details at a Glance:

ACOUSTIC SYNDICATE
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Visulite Theatre
Show starts at 9:45
Doors open at 8:00
$15 adv, $17 day of show

http://www.visulite.com/

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Have you Herd? Donna the Buffalo Rings in 2011 with the Countdown to Midnight at First Night Raleigh!

Have you Herd? Countdown to Midnight with Donna The Buffalo 2010-2011

First Night Raleigh

Friday, December 31st, 2010

set time: 10:30 – Midnight

Main Stage – Site 26

The $9 First Night Raleigh Admission Button grants you access to every venue and every activity.

All Ages

City Plaza – Downtown

Raleigh, NC

http://www.firstnightraleigh.com

The countdown is underway to First Night Raleigh 2011 — marking 20 YEARS as central North Carolina’s best and biggest New Year’s Eve celebration. Festivities will begin at 2:00 on December 31, 2010 with the Children’s Celebration, followed by the People’s Procession down Fayetteville Street, an Early Countdown at 7:00 and Evening Performances of music, dance, comedy, interactive activities and more in two dozen venues throughout downtown Raleigh.

Donna the Buffalo is happy to be ringing in the New Year with the countdown to midnight at First Night Raleigh this year! The day’s events look to be fantastic and others on the lineup include Tropic Culture, Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass, Comedy Worx, Holy Ghost Tent Revival, Chuck Davis and the African American Dance Ensemble, Mandolin Orange, Lenny Marcus Trio, Transactors Improv Company, the First Night Light Circus and many more!

Fireworks at Midnight and appearance by Ira David Wood III, actor and Executive Director of Raleigh’s Theatre in the Park, sponsored by goLiveWorkPlay.com

For complete festival details, performer schedules and admission buttons go to firstnightraleigh.com. Ring in 2011 with 40,000 of your closest friends at FIRST NIGHT RALEIGH!

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Fun Holiday Benefits with Larry and Jenny Keel!

All year long, Larry and Jenny Keel & friends support lots of great causes including the cause AGAINST mountaintop removal with Appalachian Voices; pick up an “I Love Mountains” sticker at one of their shows!  Last weekend, on Nov 27th, Larry and his brother Gary Keel played the Annual Toys for Tots Party to benefit the Rappahannock Council on Domestic Violence. The Keels are involved in two other music-filled benefits for the holiday season as well -see below for press release details- please join them if you’re in the areas!

The Work’s 9th Annual Christmas Jam Benefit Show Saturday, December 18th

The Greenville based, six-piece band The Work return to The Handlebar again for their 9th Annual Christmas Jam Benefit Show, an Upstate tradition since 2002. This Feature Holiday Event will take place on Saturday, December 18, 2010 at The Handlebar in Greenville, SC and all proceeds raised go to benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Carolinas, a “home away from home for families of critically ill children receiving treatment at area hospitals.”

This year’s Christmas Jam will feature music by The Work, with performances by a veritable treasure trove of guest musicians. And this is part of the allure of the event, the ever changing line-up of musicians. According to Craig Sorrells, “every Christmas Jam brings great memories for me with the completely unusual arrangement of musicians that come and perform with us.” The band is very excited about this year’s line- up as it includes such world renowned musicians as: Larry & Jenny Keel, Curtis Burch (New Grass Revival), Tom Gray (Delta Moon), and many more to be announced. Also joining this year will be several regional & local musicians including, but not limited to the Shane Pruitt Band, Doug Jones (Cravin’ Melon), Jonathan Lloyd, Jeff Holland, Violet & The Beauredarde’s, Tez Sherrard, plus many others. As well, there will be special surprise guest musicians making appearances during Christmas Jam.

In its previous 8 years of operation, The Work’s Christmas Jam has raised $40,000 for local charities.

www.handlebar-online.com

_______________________________________________________________

Keller Williams’10th Annual SPCA Benefit on Sunday December 26th

Before the NYE run kicks-off, Keller Williams brings his three-set extravaganza to his hometown of Fredericksburg, VA for his annual holiday concert to benefit the SPCA. To celebrate the ten year anniversary of the event, which will take place on December 26 at the Fredericksburg Field House, Keller has invited local marching band Elby Brass to join the show for set break music. 100% of the concert’s profits will go to support The Fredericksburg Regional SPCA. Less than 3% of The Fredericksburg Regional SPCA’s budget is received from the City of Fredericksburg, forcing the branch to rely almost solely on individual and corporate donations and fundraising events like this. The Fredericksburg Regional SPCA is a “no-kill” shelter whose mission is to tackle the problem of pet overpopulation through education, adoption, rehabilitation and spay/neuter.

• Set I will be reggae, dub and funk versions of Keller favorites with Jay Starling on keys, Mark D on drums and Keller on bass
• Set II will feature the bluegrass stylings of Larry Keel on guitar and his wife Jenny on bass with Keller playing his mini twelve-string (wanna-be mandolin) guitar.
• And Set III will be old school Keller on acoustic guitar with his trademark looped-out dance grooves. Big screen video visuals will be provided by Scott Sunn.

Find out more about Keller’s holiday tour here.

Show Specifics:
Sunday, Dec. 26th, 2010
Fredericksburg Regional SPCA Benefit
Fredericksburg Field House in Fredericksburg, VA
Doors at 7pm, show at 8pm
$25, All ages
www.fredfieldhouse.com

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Show Cancellation: The Herman Clan Postpones SE Tour Due to Family Emergency; Bobby Miller & the Virginia DareDevils Play in Their Honor at MoDaddy’s 12/2

SHOW CANCELLATION: Vince Herman’s mother and father are both gravely ill and he will be unable to perform the SouthEast run of shows with The Herman Clan. Please keep Vince, Colin, Silas and their family in your prayers this holiday season. Bobby Miller and the Virginia DareDevils will be performing in their honor for the MoDaddy’s show this Thursday Dec. 2nd in Asheville.

Here’s more info on the Virginia DareDevils:

The creation of innovative and original music is an ever elusive goal in this day and age. The Virginia DareDevils’ primary mission to do just that is certainly well under way. From its humble beginnings three years ago in the acoustic music hotbed of Asheville, NC, this group of seasoned musical veterans has banded together to create an organic musical stew rooted in traditional melody and tone, layered with improvisational solos, and textured rhythms reminiscent of 40’s Bluegrass and 80’s Newgrass.  With a tip of the hat, as well, to Swing, Old Time, and Psychedelic Rock and Roll, the result is a musical garment unique in style and taste.  Members include Bobby Miller (Mandolin, Lead Vocals), Griff Martin (Guitar, Vocals), Jason Flournoy (Banjo), Rick Cooper (Upright Bass), and Tim Gardner (Fiddle).

Find out more about the Virginia DareDevils’ new release, Brother Adieu, on the Asheville Roots Music Review blog.

Show details:

Bobby Miller and the Virginia DareDevils
MoDaddy’s Bar
Thursday, December 2nd

10pm
828-258-1550
77 Biltmore Ave.
Asheville, NC 28801

http://modaddysbar.com

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Mad Tea Party Releases Rock ‘n’ Roll Ghoul THIS Friday at Stella Blue in Asheville

Mad Tea Party released Rock ‘n’ Roll Ghoul a 4-song EP that is also available on 7″ vinyl this month! It was produced by Greg Cartwright (Reigning Sound, Oblivions). Visit their Bandcamp page to hear, find out more out the recording, see the great art by Gus Cutty, and to order the record (or just buy the downloads).  Start off the season with some new spooky songs!

Rock ‘n’ Roll Ghoul has already gotten a few great reviews. Read them in the Mountain Xpress, on the Sanuk D blog, and Bootleg Mag.

The Mad Tea’s big hometown show is on Friday, October 15th at Stella Blue in Asheville. They’re opening for Mark Sultan and Dr. Filth will be spinning vinyl between acts.

Photo by Michael Traister http://www.traisterphoto.com

You can also catch The Mad Tea Party on 98.1 The River in the 5:00 hour today 10/13!

They will also be in Bruisin’ Ales from 5-7pm tomorrow 10/14 (Thursday) selling records!

Stay up to the minute with The Mad Tea Party on their website, facebook, and  twitter.

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