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Friday, April 2nd |
The longest running off-Broadway show inside one of the top five performance halls in the country will once again provide great entertainment. In 2009, the Highland Acting Company debuted Godspell at the Orange Peel to sold out crowds and now returns to the Orange Peel with great momentum after touring the show to Charlotte, NC and Wichita, KS! Godspell, the musical by Stephen Schwartz and John Michael-Telebak, opened on Broadway in 1971 and has been a wild hit for millions ever since. The Highland Acting Company brings a fresh and relevant portrayal of the 70’s musical – utilizing modern art forms while embracing the original nuance of the Musical’s comedy and memorable songs, “Day by Day” and “Prepare Ye”. Godspell, based on the Biblical book of Matthew, brings a playful and compelling look at the teachings of Jesus. The Highland Acting Company will once again perform Resurrectio, an original act telling the story of the resurrection of Christ through stirring songs, “Three Days“, “Mary’s Song” and “Go“. This new local acting company will deliver powerful vocals, innovative theatre, and a strong production- all with a humorous edge. A great new version of a Broadway classic – and a great way to spend Easter weekend. |
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plus Javelin |
Yeasayer are a quartet that accomplishes no small task: transcending genre. Though peers of pastiche acts MGMT and Chairlift, Yeasayer can be seen as successors to the genre-defying Brooklyn scene defined by trailblazing, boundary-razing acts like Animal Collective, Black Dice, and Gang Gang Dance. Yeasayer make a baroque folk-rock that sounds both futurist and tribalist at once; fashioning a casually-indefinable collage of four-part harmonies, junkyard percussion, horror-movie synth squelches, and spidery guitar-lines. Music video for "Ambling Alp" |
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plus Abe Vigoda
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Some bands stay in a holding pattern their whole careers. Others jerk the steering wheel hard and fly off the road. On their second album, Vampire Weekend do neither. Or maybe they do both. "I think we sound more like Vampire Weekend than we did on the first record," says drummer Christopher Tomson. Contra pulls off a series of impressive feats: It's bustling with fresh ideas, and yet it sounds immediately familiar; it's heavily layered but taut and kinetic; it chews ravenously through sound palettes and rhythms, and yet it's nimble and assured; it's still breezy, and yet it smolders with a newfound emotional heft. "It's sadder than the first one, a bit more sentimental," says singer Ezra Koenig. The songs are catchy, fast, twinkling, clattering the darker themes of loss, doubt and regret accumulate almost imperceptibly, but they land a powerful blow.
Music video for "Cousins" |
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Wednesday, April 7th |
Combining musical versatility, instrumental prowess, beautiful vocal harmonies and a superb rhythm section, the Easy Star All-Stars have established themselves as one of the top international reggae acts since their live debut in 2003. Thanks to their best-selling tribute album releases, Dub Side of the Moon (2003) and Radiodread (2006), as well as Until That Day (2008), an original EP, the Easy Star All-Stars have built a growing, dedicated fan base throughout the world, bringing together fans of reggae, classic rock, dub and indie rock into one big family. Their latest release, Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band, released in April 2009, tackles the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in complete reggae fashion. It cracked the Billboard Top 200 twice, becoming the first reggae album to do that in over two years. |
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plus Dick50 |
Three-time Grammy® Award winning artist Delbert McClinton has released his latest album Acquired Taste. It's his first new studio recording in over four years. The album is a juke joint blend of country soul, infused with blues, rock and jazz. McClinton, one of the greatest American vocalists, showcases his versatile voice on ballads like "Starting A Rumor" and "Never Saw It Comin'", while he jazzes things up on tracks including "Mama's Little Baby" and "Until Then." McClinton, who can be heard on vocals, guitar and harmonica, calls on his seasoned band, Dick50, to back him on the new record; Lynn Williams (drums), Steve Mackey (bass), Kevin McKendree (keyboards, lead guitar on "Cherry Street") and Rob McNelley (guitar, background vocals on "When She Cries At Night"). McClinton is also joined by several guest musicians including his longtime friend Stephen Bruton, who plays guitar and sings background vocals on "Can't Nobody Say I Didn't Try." Coming to Asheville for the show? Book a room and tickets at the same time through our official hotel partner at the Residence Inn. The Residence Inn is located less than 2 miles from the Orange Peel, on the same road as the club. CLICK HERE to book your room and ticket package!
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plus The Kissaway Trail |
A lot of water’s passed under the bridge since The Temper Trap’s delay soaked opening to ‘Sweet Disposition’ first began causing a stir on Australian radio late last year. The track was the first taster of their recording sessions with UK producer Jim Abbiss (UNKLE, Adele, Arctic Monkeys) and it clearly made the world sit up and take notice. The track instantly won the band a steady stream of influential fans around the globe. Following a handful of much lauded dates in the UK & US in November, the band’s star rose quickly winning coveted spots on ’09 tip lists by the BBC, NME & X-FM, scoring rotation from influential BBC hosts Zane Lowe and Steve Lamacq, as well recording a stunning four track live session for the BBC’s Introducing series . The new year only saw the momentum gather pace with the band signing a worldwide record deal (ex ANZ & Nth America) with Korda Marshall’s newly re-launched Infectious Records (previously home to Muse, Garbage & Ash), scoring a trailer and key film placement for Sundance buzz US film ‘500 Days of Summer’and continued glowing reviews on blog sites stretching from Melbourne to London and New York and Madrid.
Music video for "Sweet Disposition" |
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Tuesday, April 13th |
Think of George Clinton and you'll likely conjure an image of a crazy black man with rainbow dreads and garb befitting a galactic shaman literally barking at phat bottomed girls with a sub-atomic "WOOF!" This lovable nutcase is the legendary and internationally renowned grandfather of funk and the founder of the Parliament-Funkadelic MOB, taking the sonic innovations of James Brown and Sly Stone to both outer space AND Neptune while selling millions of records and concert tickets in the process. Quiet as its kept, however, George Clinton's initial approach to the ladies was crooning (when he wasn't cutting hair) as the leader of a standup vocal group he formed in `55 called The Parliaments, emulating the doo wop and love songs that were popular when he was in diapers (well...he STILL wears those on occasion).
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with Special Guests Cyril Neville and Corey Henry (of the Rebirth Brass Band) |
It’s shaping up to be a stellar year for celebrated New Orleans outfit Galactic. On February 9th the band will release their groundbreaking new album Ya-Ka-May a visionary mix, intertwining New Orleans sounds from jazz to brass band to funk and far beyond. With this release, the five-man group comprised of drummer Stanton Moore, bassist Robert Mercurio, saxophonist/harmonica player Ben Ellman, keyboardist Richard Vogel, and guitarist Jeff Raines – reaffirms their status as the quintessential modern day New Orleans band and one of the funkiest outfits in the known universe. Ya-Ka-May features all-new material generated by the band in collaboration with a stellar series of New Orleans guests, who range from iconic figures of the 1960s to the younger veterans to the underground. These invitees appear here outside their normal contexts and away from the sound you might typically associate with them, like putting a picture in a different frame. Guaranteed you know some of their names, but it’s unlikely that you know them all, even if you live in New Orleans. At first listen you’re bound to discover scorching talents from the worlds of music you know – jazz, brass bands, r&b, gospel, rock – and one you may not have encountered before: bounce. |
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plus Mike Farris |
Allen Toussaint has crossed many paths in his illustrious 40 years plus career in music. He has produced, written for, arranged, had his songs covered by, and performed with music giants The Judds, Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, Elvis Costello, Patti LaBelle, Mac "Dr. John" Rebannac, Aaron and Art Neville, Joe Cocker, The (original) Meters, Glen Campbell, The Band, Little Feat, The Rolling Stones, Devo, Ernie K-Doe, Lee Dorsey, Irma Thomas, Etta James, Ramsey Lewis, Eric Gale and the countless others. His songs/productions have been featured in numerous films, including but not limited to, Casino, Moulin Rouge, and Maid in Manhattan. He served as musical director for the off Broadway play, Staggerlee, which won the prestigious Outer Circle Critics Award. Toussaint career began in his early twenties when hired by the local Minit Records to supervise its recording activities, awaiting their arrival of Harold Batiste. Toussaint quickly accumulated an amazing string of hits for the label, producing, writing, arranging and often performing on tracks by Ernie K-Doe, Irma Thomas, Art and Aaron Neville, Chris Kenner, and Benny Spellman, putting his signature New Orleans sound on the map, an obvious continuation of the Domino/Bartholomew era. Coming to Asheville for the show? Book a room and tickets at the same time through our official hotel partner at the Residence Inn. The Residence Inn is located less than 2 miles from the Orange Peel, on the same road as the club. CLICK HERE to book your room and ticket package! |
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plus Langhorne Slim |
Flaunting a mix of Southern pride, erudite lyrics, and a muscled three-guitar attack, Drive-By Truckers became one of the most well-respected alternative country-rock acts of the 2000s. Led by frontman, Patterson Hood, and comprising a rotating cast of Georgia and Alabama natives, the band celebrates the South while refusing to paint over its spotty past. History, Southern folklore, politics, and character studies all share equal space in the Truckers catalog. The band's newest CD is The Fine Print - a collection of oddities and rarities, which features songs written by band members past and present. |
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plus fun., A Rocket To The Moon & Sing It Loud |
On January 19, 2010, Motion City Soundtrack will release their long-awaited fourth album, My Dinosaur Life, for Columbia Records. When it came time for Motion City Soundtrack to record their major-label debut, the band called upon Blink-182 bassist/producer/friend Mark Hoppus, who first worked with the group on their breakthrough album Commit This To Memory. “We weren’t looking for someone to change us into something we aren’t,” explains Cain. “We just wanted to be free to make a darker, rock record. With Mark, he’s such a champion of what we do.” With Hoppus in their corner and a stockpile of songs that had been demoed in Minneapolis during the fall of 2008, the band was all set to relocate to Los Angeles in the New Year to start work on production for My Dinosaur Life—that is, until 1 a.m. on January 1, 2009, when Thaxton took a spill and broke his right arm. “Unfortunately, I wasn’t doing anything cool,” admits Thaxton, slightly embarrassed. “I was leaving a New Year’s Eve party and I slipped off the curb when we were walking to the car. I didn’t think anything about the fall until I tried to get up and then knew something was very wrong.” It’s this predilection for organized upheaval that further explains why Motion City Soundtrack—and their new album My Dinosaur Life, which was mixed by Andy Wallace (Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Kaiser Chiefs)—is a study of musical contradictions because without the chaos, there wouldn’t be the calm and without the pain, there wouldn’t be the pop. “We’ve battled for every one of our fans,” says Cain. “With Commit This To Memory, the snowball started rolling hard and fast. We went from playing in front of 150-200 kids to 1,500-2,000 kids without an issue. I think with Even If It Kills Me, that snowball definitely started melting and it was harder to push that ball down the hill. I understand because it was a different record—but we’ve always made different records.” For better or worse, it’s Motion City Soundtrack’s constant quest to evolve and challenge themselves as musicians—and people—that keeps fans coming back for more. After all, as the saying goes, to be irreplaceable, one must always be different.
Music video for "Disappear" |
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featuring Fashawn, BK-One & Dow Jones |
For the first time in his life, Brother Ali has been enjoying some day-to-day stability. Gone is the turbulent marriage to his first wife, homelessness, and the associated drama—all of which Ali openly documented on his last LP, The Undisputed Truth. His new album, Us, is a progression that will establish Brother Ali as one of Hip Hop’s most enduring figures. While maintaining his intimate approach to songwriting, Ali has broadened his focus to examine life through his relationships with those closest to him. The new direction allows Ali to venture through the strengths and flaws of the human condition, exploring the evils of slavery, drug abuse, rape and poverty as well as the beauty of love, family and redemption. Continuing the tradition of Ali’s previous albums, Us is produced entirely by long time partner Ant (Atmosphere, Felt) who provides enchanting mixtures of lush strings, and haunting choirs with the grinding pulse of funk-inspired synth bass and talk box. Giving Ali the perfect musical bed to deliver his commanding and ever thought provoking musings. Music video for "Uncle Sam Goddamn" |
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Friday, April 23rd |
The members of Railroad Earth aren’t losing sleep about what “kind” of music they play – they just play it. When they started out in 2001, they were a bunch of guys interested in playing acoustic instruments together. As Railroad Earth violin/vocalist Tim Carbone recalls, “All of us had been playing in various projects for years, and many of us had played together in different projects. But this time, we found ourselves all available at the same time.” Acoustic guitar/lead vocalist Todd Sheaffer continues, “When we started, we only loosely had the idea of getting together and playing some music. It started that informally; just getting together and doing some picking and playing. Over a couple of month period, we started working on some original songs, as well as playing some covers that we thought would be fun to play.” Shortly thereafter, they took five songs from their budding repertoire into a studio and knocked out a demo in just two days. Their soon-to-be manager sent that demo to a few festivals, and – to the band’s surprise – they were booked at the prestigious Telluride Bluegrass Festival before they’d even played their first gig. This prompted them to quickly go in and record five more songs; the ten combined tracks of which made up their debut album, “The Black Bear Sessions.” |
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Saturday, April 24th |
The Excitement Plan's laid- back groove and top- shelf lyrics are being called Todd Snider's best work yet. "This music is sorta JJ Cale meets Jerry Jeff Walker sounding with words that would hopefully impress Shel Silverstein, Bobby Bare, Chuck Berry, Kris Kristofferson or Randy Newman," Snider said. With his contributions of stellar guitar, piano and harmonica, his musicianship shares the spotlight as easily as his treasured lyrics. Snider is a vociferous musician whose fans know him to be quite the workhorse. His acclaimed 2006 release, The Devil You Know found the barefoot troubadour performing live on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with David Letterman and the CD appeared on numerous year-end Top 10 lists including Spin, Blender and Rolling Stone. More recently, last year's Peace Queer EP--a concept record featuring all the peace, love and anarchy Snider is known for-inspired Blender to say he "morphed from a wisecracking country-ish journeyman to the sharpest and funniest protest singer working today." The EP spent five weeks at number one on the Americana chart and Spin Magazine dubbed him, "One of roots music's slyest, smartest songwriters." |
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The Orange Peel
101 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, North Carolina 28801
info@theorangepeel.net