Local documentar­y “Buskin’ Blues” premieres

by Paul Clark The biggest challenge to making a movie about the busking scene in downtown Asheville, says Erin Derham, was knowing when to stop. New buskers cycled through town all summer, giving the filmmaker endless possibilities to flesh out her story on the subculture these musicians inhabit. Super-organized and deadline-oriented, Derham gave herself six months […]

Smart bets: Jim Lauderdale

Although country singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale is as tied to Nashville as to the colorful, embroidered suits he wears, he’s actually a North Carolina native. The son of a minister and a church organist, Lauderdale was born in Troutman, N.C., and grew up in South Carolina. He did head to Nashville after college, but it was […]

Weirdos R Us: 23 Skidoo celebrates the Year of the Weird with a book and album launch

In the Chinese zodiac, 2014 is the Year of the Horse. For the United Nations, it’s the Year of Family Farming and Crystallography. And, as designated by Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, it’s the Year of the Salamander. No stranger to celebrating diversity and creative thinking for all ages, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo honors […]

Smart bets: Xavier Rudd

Part multi-instrumentalist, part mythical creature, singer-songwriter/surfer/environmentalist/cultural activist Xavier Rudd took the didgeridoo from tribal instrument to legitimate dance club beat-maker. The musician, who lives in Australia, “gradually refined his globally influenced collage of world music — a matchless mixture of reggae, funk, blues, folk, and nearly every other sort of song with the ability to […]

Smart Bets: Deer Tick

There’s something refreshingly honest about the way singer-songwriter John McCauley of Deer Tick delivers his unapologetic lyrics. His brazen vocals are backed by upbeat instrumentals. In an interview on NPR’s “World Café,” McCauley said that a lot of personal turmoil provided inspiration for the band’s fifth album, Negativity, released in 2013.  The Providence, Rhode Island-based […]