{"id":36465,"date":"2015-09-30T06:31:54","date_gmt":"2015-09-30T10:31:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/raleighpublicrecord.org\/?p=36465"},"modified":"2015-09-30T06:31:54","modified_gmt":"2015-09-30T10:31:54","slug":"wide-open-bluegrass-street-festival-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/news\/2015\/09\/30\/wide-open-bluegrass-street-festival-preview\/","title":{"rendered":"Wide Open Bluegrass Street Festival Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s that time of year again, folks. The Wide Open Bluegrass festival will be setting up shop in downtown Raleigh for its third year.<\/p>\n

The festival will attract locals as well as international fans, and attendance is expected to surpass last year\u2019s 150,000. Fayetteville Street will be closed off to make room for spectators, as well as dozens of local food and beer trucks.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s headliner will be Alison Krauss, whose illness in 2013 prevented her from performing in Raleigh\u2019s first Wide Open Bluegrass festival. She\u2019ll be back for a do-over on Friday with her longtime band, Union Station. In addition, the Sam Bush Band, Earls of Leicester, and select others will be gracing the main stage at Red Hat Amphitheatre.<\/p>\n

While Red Hat may be hosting some of the bigger names in bluegrass, the street festival downtown is set to have a record number of performers during the two day festival. There will be a total of seven stages, including a dance tent, throughout downtown Raleigh. The headliners this year are widely known in the world of bluegrass, but the street festival is full of promising newcomers and seasoned veterans. There\u2019s no way to possibly see all of the acts, but here’s a few to look out for, along with their answers to a trio of questions.<\/p>\n

Lonely Heartstring Band<\/h4>\n

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From humble beginnings as Beatlegrass, a Beatles cover band, the Lonely Heartstring Band has developed their own signature sound over the years. In their early days, they played weddings. Now, they tour the country playing festivals big and small. Their recently released Kickstarter album has been generating buzz, and rightfully so. You can see them on Friday, October 2nd<\/sup> at 5:15 on the Hargett Street Stage.<\/p>\n

From:<\/strong> Boston, Ma.<\/p>\n

Excited to See at WOB:<\/strong> Alison Krauss, Town Mountain, Railsplitters, Mr. Sun.<\/p>\n

Favorite bluegrass musicians:<\/strong> Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs.<\/p>\n

Liam Purcell<\/h4>\n

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Don\u2019t let his size fool you. 13 year old Liam Purcell is a skilled multi-instrumentalist. Liam plays a total of nine instruments, including fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin, and bass. His band, Cane Mill Road, recently played the Iguazu en Concerto festival in Argentina. This will be the largest American festival for Liam, so head downtown early on Friday to catch him at the J.A.M. Showcase next to City Plaza at 11 a.m. Also, his band, Cane Mill Road, will be on the same stage at 2:00 on Saturday.<\/p>\n

From:<\/strong> Deep Gap, NC.<\/p>\n

Excited to see at WOB:<\/strong> Claire Lynch Band, Flatt Lonesome, Sam Bush & the Infamous Stringdusters.<\/p>\n

Favorite bluegrass band:<\/strong> Nickel Creek<\/p>\n

The Lang Sisters<\/h4>\n

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Since forming their band in 2012, sisters Chloe, 17, and Jessica, 13, have been upstanding members of the IBMA and the North Carolina Bluegrass Association. They\u2019ve played many stages, from festivals to nursing homes, and show no signs of slowing down. This will be their third consecutive year playing at the Wide Open Bluegrass Festival in Raleigh. They\u2019ll be featured Friday, October 2nd<\/sup> at the J.A.M. Showcase next to City Plaza at 4:30.<\/p>\n

From:<\/strong> Wake Forest, NC.<\/p>\n

Excited to see at WOB:<\/strong> Mipso, Josh Goforth, Sierra Hull, Balsam Range.<\/p>\n

Favorite bluegrass musicians:<\/strong> Alison Krauss & Union Station, Rebecca Frazier, Bryan Sutton.<\/p>\n

Ragged Union<\/h4>\n

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The aptly named Ragged Union is the Frankenstein monster of bluegrass bands. Its members are from all over the country, most of them coming from different bluegrass groups. Although, after hearing them play, you\u2019d think they\u2019ve been together for years. Various members have played at large festivals such as MerleFest, Rocky Grass, and Keystone Bluegrass, but this will be one of their largest festivals as a group. They\u2019ll be playing at 1:30 on Saturday, October 3rd<\/sup> at the Davie Street stage.<\/p>\n

From:<\/strong> Texas, Colorado, Alaska, North Carolina, Missouri, Tennessee.<\/p>\n

Excited to see at WOB:<\/strong> Wood and Wire, Steep Canyon Rangers, Blue Highway.<\/p>\n

Favorite bluegrass musician:<\/strong> Danny Paisley<\/p>\n

Shadowgrass<\/h4>\n

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This young group is well aware that they are playing in the shadow of the great musicians that came before them, hence the name Shadowgrass. That humble mindset, coupled with incredible talent makes for some great music. The members\u2019 ages range from 11 to 15, but if bluegrass music has taught us anything, it\u2019s that age is just a number. Shadowgrass will be closing the J.A.M. showcase next to City Plaza at 5:45 on Saturday.<\/p>\n

From:<\/strong> Western NC, Southwest VA<\/p>\n

Excited to see at WOB:<\/strong> Flatt Lonesome, Earls of Leicester, April Verch<\/p>\n

Favorite bluegrass musicians:<\/strong> Too many to name.<\/p>\n

Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys<\/h4>\n

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Since the release of their first record in 2012, Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys have been traveling almost nonstop. They have been featured at festivals nationwide, including the prestigious StageCoach by Coachella. Their music combines Michigan roots with Appalachian tradition, creating a truly unique sound. They recently went on tour around America and the U.K. after releasing their latest album, \u201cIonia.\u201d Be sure to catch them on Saturday, playing on the Davie Street Stage at 4:00.<\/p>\n

From:<\/strong> Nashville TN, Michigan<\/p>\n

Excited to see at WOB:<\/strong> Jayme Stone\u2019s Lomax Project, Front Country, Mr. Sun<\/p>\n

Favorite Bluegrass musicians:<\/strong> Too many to name.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Raleigh resident and Bluegrass aficionado Zack Vile brings us a preview of some of the lesser-known bands that will be performing at this year’s Wide Open Bluegrass Festival in downtown Raleigh, an event that is expected to draw more than 15,000 music-lovers into the city’s core. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1560588,"featured_media":36634,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36465"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1560588"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36465"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36465\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36634"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}