There’s nothing wrong with a little retail indulgence, especially with great holiday shopping deals aimed at keeping consumer dollars in the local economy.
Marching into the holiday season
The Asheville Holiday Parade made its way through downtown on Saturday, Nov. 23. Photographer Joshua Cole was there.
Sound Track web extra: Tina and her Pony
Tina Collins and Quetzal Jordan make a great case for whimsy and animal aliases. The duo’s opening set at The Altamont Theatre last weekend was folky, rootsy, warm and unexpected.
A new crop of songs
In 2006, Bryon McMurry had 75,000 tomato plants in the ground and was moving produce on a large scale. But then the economy took a dive, along with a hefty chunk of McMurry’s confidence. It sounds like the basis for a blues or country song that some Nashville-based troubador might pen about someone else’s hard […]
Smart Bets: Cassandra King
"In this novel of second chances, the conflicts begin because Emmett remarries quickly and brings his new wife, Helen, into the world he had occupied with Rosalyn before her puzzling death. At Helen’s insistence, the couple retreats for the summer to the grand and eerie mansion in the mountains of Highlands, N.C., known as Moonrise, […]
Smart Bets: David Wilcox
It's the time of year for annual happenings: turkey dinners, top-10 roundups and homecoming shows. The latter is the case of singer-songwriter David Wilcox's annual Thanksgiving show at The Grey Eagle. "It happens every year and it's kind of a Thanksgiving table of musicians," says Wilcox in a preview video he posted on YouTube. "I'll […]
All sewed up
In the hierarchy of craft cachet, fiber arts are often less discussed than other media such as pottery or metalwork. Maybe that’s because textiles are, by nature, a quieter genre: no hammers to wield, forges or kilns to stoke or clay to sling. But Western North Carolina’s textile artists are not only thriving, they’re taking […]
Smart Bets: The Melodic
If the name The Melodic seems a bit too pointed (albeit sweetly so), the English folk ensemble has been living up to it. A collaboration between songwriters Huw Williams and Rudi Schmidt, the Melodic taps ’60s and ’70s British and American folk along with inspirations gleaned from international travel. “Our approach to recording our songs […]
State of the Arts
The next two weeks offer a couple of unconventional opportunities to connect with local culture and influence. From an art exhibit featuring folk-heritage takes on seasonal spirit to a film focused on the German-born Bauhaus movement in America (and, specifically, Western North Carolina), it’s an insider’s perspective on regional art and craft. The spirit of […]
Smart Bets: Malcolm Holcombe
"This album really was created by the grace of the good Lord and a lot of friends and family that have helped this old boy and his family," singer-songwriter and WNC native Malcolm Holcombe said in a recent interview. He was talking about his newest album, Down the River — his ninth studio effort. Holcombe […]
Music heals
Complete silence. All noise ceases upon entering the sound chamber. Once a patient is seated in the suspended chair, Mickra Hamilton, owner of Synchronicity Wellness and an audiology expert for the U.S. military, lifts them on a hoist, so that their ear aligns with a laser pointer. This is the point where the sound waves […]
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The Dave Rawlings Machine at The Grey Eagle
The five-piece iteration of the band took to the stage shortly after 8 p.m. on Friday night and opened with “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.” It’s a song often reserved for the end of the night. But in this case, it set forth the evening’s familial tone as front man Rawlings lead the newest lineup of his ever-evolving Machine through a two-and-a-half-hour old-time music marathon. Photo from the band’s Facebook page.
Christmas Jam Update: Gregg Allman, Widspread Panic added to lineup; session ale now available
As Asheville prepares to celebrate the silver anniversary of the Christmas Jam, the musical lineup keeps getting better and better. Plus, a special Christmas Jam Session Ale has hit the shelves of local stores.
Holiday kitsch-tacular
From Burlesque and theater to rope apparel and seasonal sweaters, here’s how to keep the season quirky.
Hooks from the Highlands
How Chvrches’ Glasgow roots feed its infectious synth-pop. The Scottish band plays The Orange Peel on Saturday, Nov. 30. 9 p.m. Photo by Eliot Hazel.
Breaking up is hard to do. Not so hard to film.
Writer/director Nathan Ives’ romantic comedy, “It’s Not You, It’s Me,” attempts to fill us in on the machinations behind the baffling decisions our loved ones make. The indie-film, by a former Asheville resident, was screened at Carolina Cinemas on Tuesday.
The doctor is in
Revisit Doc Aquatic’s AHA AVL performance.
CalCast: Nov. 22-24
This weekend is all about the Asheville Parade and the music of Johnny Cash. Podcast hosted by Theresa Amandi of Asheville Free Media’s Bombshell-ter Radio.
Glaze chemistry
In a short video, a Carolina Day student talks about her independent research project.
