Steep Canyon Rangers celebrate new record and 10th anniversary of Mountain Song Festival

NEW VANTAGE POINTS: “The record is kind of [our] chance to mess around,” says Steep Canyon Rangers banjo player Graham Sharp (second from right) of new album, Radio. The band brought in Jerry Douglas as producer because "he's at the top of the world in bluegrass, but he also has a lot of experience outside the world of bluegrass." Photo by Sandlin Gaither

As the Brevard-based Americana outfit Steep Canyon Rangers prepare for the release of their ninth solo record, Radio — the follow up to 2013’s Grammy Award-winning Nobody Knows You — they’re also set to celebrate an important milestone for both the band and their community. The 10th anniversary of the Mountain Song Festival, an event started by the Steeps, takes place at the Brevard Music Center Friday, Sept. 11 through Sunday, Sept. 13.

“It really ties us back to into the community,” banjo player and singer Graham Sharp says. “We travel so much that we can often feel a little disconnected from home, and this really brings us back in.”

The festival began a decade ago when the group’s guitar player and lead vocalist, Woody Platt, was prodded by his mom, Cindy Platt — an “awesome, community-minded woman,” according to Sharp. She was on the board of the Boys & Girls Club at the time, and the organization was short on funds, so Platt and John Felty, his former bandmate in Jupiter Coyote, co-founded the festival to raise money for them. The Steep Canyon Rangers (including bassist Charles R. Humphrey III, Nicky Sanders on fiddle, Mike Guggino on mandolin and vocals and Michael Ashworth on box kit and vocals) signed on as perpetual hosts for the annual event.

Although not quite the household names that they are today, the group’s reputation was already sterling in the bluegrass world. The Steeps were able to secure Doc Watson for the first year and book the 1,800 permanent-seat Brevard Music Center (with plenty of lawn seating as well), which comes with the elegant backdrop of the Pisgah National Forest. In 10 years’ time, the festival has stretched from one to three days and raised a half-million dollars for the Boys & Girls Club, as well as becoming a signature event for the band and a mark of its continued rise in the music world.

“It’s always been reflective of our position in the music scene,” Sharp says. “It’s a decent amount of bluegrass, but it also branches out a bit. We try to balance between people we know the audience will love, like Ricky Skaggs and the Del McCoury Band, and also have the audience trust us a bit to bring in new stuff — like this year, we’re going to have The Milk Carton Kids.” The festival also features some of the region’s top roots talent, like Town Mountain and singer-songwriter Shannon Whitworth.

Most importantly, the Steep Canyon Rangers will play each of the three nights, and Sharp promises a surprise guest will be coming in for the weekend.

Tenth anniversary aside, celebration seems in order, given the band’s fortunes. Collaborations with comedian and actor Steve Martin, a fierce banjo player, have given the group an increased national profile. So has the band’s hard-touring ways and powerful, consummate live shows.

For Radio, the Steeps enlisted the help of Dobro legend Jerry Douglas to produce, a move Sharp calls “obvious, [because] Jerry’s the dude, a bluegrass hero, not just for the Dobro but in a lot of ways.” He continues, “What attracted us to him is that he’s at the top of the world in bluegrass, but he also has a lot of experience outside the world of bluegrass. We felt like he was going to be the perfect fit for the record. And I think he was.”

The resulting album reaffirms the band’s assured instrumental chops and comfort with subtly adapting traditional instrumentation (banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle, bass and box kit) to songs grounded in, but not limited by, bluegrass and honky-tonk archetypes. While the Steep Canyon Rangers’ sound never strays too far from their signature approach, it’s easy to note the bursts of distortion that mark the beginning of “Blow Me Away” or the rocklike bridge on the title track as moments where the band feels far from tied to tradition.

Those songs are sure to get some play at the Mountain Song Festival, but the weekend is really about the relationship of the Steep Canyon Rangers and the Western North Carolina music scene. “[They have], without a doubt, forged their own niche within Americana and the bluegrass scene as well,” Felty says of the musicians. “Not only have they helped put Western North Carolina back on the map, but have helped make it an epicenter. In my opinion, they have aided bluegrass music to be accepted and appreciated by a more mainstream audience with all their achievements.”

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Kyle Petersen
Kyle is a Columbia, South Carolina-based freelance music writer and graduate student at the University of South Carolina. He's also in a sincere, long-term love affair with the city of Asheville. You can follow him on Twitter at @kpetersen.

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

2 thoughts on “Steep Canyon Rangers celebrate new record and 10th anniversary of Mountain Song Festival

    • RBL

      he wasn’t / they have played together / but Felty was the member of JC, he lives in Brevard and promotes many great event in the town!

Leave a Reply to JM ×

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.