Video a-go-go

Although we’ve covered Asheville’s healthy supply of video-blogging moms (mommyvloggers?) before, until this week we haven’t seen much in the way of that other kind of online mom-to-mom networking, as exemplified by sites like AshevilleMommies.com. Thanks to AskAsheville, however, these two digital worlds are colliding.

If you have a strong community spirit, it’s always flattering to see how out-of-towners—particularly folks like touring musicians, who see a lot of places in their travels—view a place like Western North Carolina. If you can muddle through the Gen-Y goofiness during the first minute-and-a-half, it’s worth watching how touring performers Allison Weiss and Lauren Zettler  react to the local landscape most of us take for granted every day.

Even in the middle of summer, Sliding Rock is almost unbearably cold. After all, the water comes from recently melted ice rushing down the mountains near Brevard. And if it’s cold in summer, you can only image what it’s like in fall, and basic common sense would tell you that it’s probably a better idea do go a-sliding when you’ll at least have the summer sun to take some of the chill off. But this guy isn’t having any of that argument, even if it takes him more than four minutes to work up the courage to dive in. And how was it? Surprise: “Cold!”

If there’s one person whose passing has left a still-visible void in the Asheville arts community, it’s John Payne. In addition to being a major force behind the revitalization of the River Arts District by turning the Wedge building into a vibrant arts community, Payne was also a truly gifted and deeply imaginative metalworker and sculptor. Just take a look this video, which shows some of his creations in action.

It’s hard to tell if the Asheville-based Songs From The Road Band thought they were being cleverly sarcastic when they wrote this song, or if it’s an honest acknowledgment of a regional phenomenon of musical transplantation that’s at least a good decade old. Thankfully, it’s a good enough little tune that it doesn’t really matter all that much. Here’s “Gonna Start a Bluegrass Band in Asheville.”

Each week, dozens upon dozens of interesting local videos are uploaded to YouTube. It’s a lot to keep up with. Did we miss a particularly interesting, recently uploaded local video? Share it by leaving the videos URL (but not the embed code) in the comment fields below. Also, please mark it Not Work Safe if there’s any controversial content to the video.