Town Mountain
Born out of the all night jam sessions and fertile picking scene of western North Carolina, Town Mountain has emerged as one of the premier young American bluegrass bands. Great original material, tight vocal harmonies, charismatic stage presence, and instrumental expertise place this group firmly in the upper tier of contemporary acoustic bands.
However, despite all these qualities, it’s the undeniable, irresistible energy of a live Town Mountain show that truly sets this group apart, winning over audiences in theatres, clubs, house concerts, and festivals all across the country. It all started in 2005, when the guys decided to take their homegrown sound on its first national tour. That summer was spent swaggering across the country, honing their music in smoky bars and hometown honkytonks nightly. The tour ended with a bang in Colorado, where Town Mountain joined the ranks of Steep Canyon Rangers, Chatham County Line and Yonder Mountain String Band by winning the prestigious Rockygrass Band Competition. The tour and the win kicked the Town Mountain experience into high gear, establishing the group as a force among American string bands, and a live show that is not to be missed.
It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what it is that gives Town Mountain this unique, contagious energy. It could be the visual performance that accompanies their great music. The guys bob and weave around each other, to and from the microphones, in order to facilitate their surprisingly sophisticated vocal and instrumental arrangements. The result is a natural choreography, an exciting visual performance that makes the band almost as fun to watch, as it is to listen to.
Almost. Town Mountain is monumentally fun to listen to. This is the hard-driving, no nonsense, slammin’ bluegrass that makes you whoop and holler and stomp your feet. Yet it’s mixed with just enough slow country crooning to keep it balanced, just enough outlaw swagger to give it a honky-tonk edge, and just enough contemporary, alt-whatever elements to make it equally appealing to non-bluegrass fans as well. And best of all, it is original music: sincere, honest, heartfelt, original bluegrass music.
In May of 2011, Town Mountain teamed with Pinecastle Records to release their third album, Steady Operator. The album produced by Grammy award winner Mike Bub (Del McCoury Band) features original compositions by band members Jesse Langlais and two-time IBMA Songwriter Showcase selection Phil Barker.
Audio
Steady Operator (2011)
Buy on iTunes
Heroes & Heretics (2008)
Buy at CDBaby
Videos
“Up the Ladder” from Music City Roots 6/8/11
“Sparkle City” from Music City Roots 6/8/11
“Midnight Road” from the Rhythm ‘n Blooms Attack Monkey Sessions, Knoxville, TN (August 29, 2011)
The Scuttlebutt
…several showcase performances pointed toward what could well be the future of bluegrass. Town Mountain—a young band out of Asheville whose lead singer, Robert Greer, was hoarse from a picking party the night before—worked a traditional vein, but did so with a lot of youthful bite, treating hard-edged originals “Sparkle City” and “Come Break My Heart” like hillbilly rock. – Jewly Hight, American Songwriter Magazine, Sep 30, 2011
Fans of traditional bluegrass had good reason for optimism … The group did not disappoint, taking the stage attired in open-collar suits and wowing the audience with song-after-solid-bluegrass-song. – Cliff Abbott, Bluegrass Today, Sep 29, 2011
Although very much a bluegrass band with nationwide bluegrass festival appearances and the reverence of traditional bluegrass lovers on both coasts, Town Mountain at times resembles an acoustic hard-folk band, favoring covers by Bruce Springsteen and Sun Volt over a heavy set list with names like Bill Monroe or Ralph Stanley. – Bryant Liggett, freelance writer, Durango Herald and KDUR station manager, Sep 29, 2011
“The music contained within this album is a colorful pallet of bluegrass, blues, ballads, breakdowns and bible. From the bounce of Sparkle City and Sugar Mama, to the poignant ballads Five Shots of Whiskey and Midnight Road, the eco-conscious message of Diggin’ On A Mountainside to the sturdy gospel duet of Humble Shepherd, the driving banjo, fiddle and mandolin on Fallin’ Off The Wagon and Tar Heel Boys, Original Bluegrass songs played with passion and youthful vitality.” – Mike Bub
“Town Mountain is flat loaded with talent. The band delivers its grass both new and old style. With Robert Greer singing lead, the vocals come across as authentic, even as the lyrics stretch well beyond the traditional boundaries.” – The Roanoke Times
“Town Mountain is on the make. Coming out of the same NC scene that produced the Steep Canyon Rangers and Chatham County Line, this Asheville quintet is one of those bands that should make tradition-minded fans comfortable that the burning historic core of the music is alive and well.” – Music City Roots
“And then there’s Town Mountain, a rising star in the bluegrass universe. Durango audiences were introduced to them at the Abbey Theatre shortly after they won the RockyGrass band competition in 2005. They later stole the show at the 2010 Meltdown, cementing their local legacy.” – Chris Aaland, The Durango Telegraph
“High-energy bluegrass band with unlimited potential” – Bluegrass Unlimited
“… a mix of tough and tender, nimble musicianship, and close harmonies” – The Boston Globe
Town Mountain, celebrating their Mike Bub-produced second release (and Pinecastle debut) Steady Operator, are among the best, and the distance they’ve put between their first album and this one suggests they’re in it for the long haul. The material — most of it written by band members Phil Barker and Jesse Langlais — lies squarely in the funky space between old and new, and the execution just keeps getting better. With another busy season halfway under their belts, these boys are primed to deliver the goods.
— Jon Weisberger, Nashville Scene