A few hundred people rallied under clear blue skies in Pack Square Park Aug. 24 to call on Duke Energy to shutter its Asheville coal plant and advocate for clean energy. The event, called "Beyond Coal: A Rally for Our Future," featured local speakers, singers and popular TV actor/vampire Ian Somerhalder. Mary Anne Hitt, national … Read more
At the Downtown Market in Asheville, it is a widely held belief that participating substantively in the election process is essential in upholding the democratic values that many have fought and suffered for. Hence we are establishing an ongoing, permanent voter registration drive at the market at 45 S. French Broad Ave. and are challenging … Read more
N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Aldona Wos has directed leaders from the 14 state-operated health care facilities to implement a mandatory flu vaccination policy for its 10,000 employees ahead of this year's flu season. Employees and volunteers were informed this week of the new policy, which requires them to be vaccinated by … Read more
It is said that artists are only limited by their imaginations. Contrary to that famous saying, printmakers are limited by the size of the printing press. That is, until they acquire some construction equipment to help them out. Asheville Bookworks is hosting an event on Saturday, Aug. 31, where eight to 10 artists will be … Read more
I mostly read the Asheville papers for news about food and new restaurants. But I keep seeing articles about the breakdown of society in Egypt, and about the breakdown of democracy in Raleigh. In both cases, a suppressed minority came to power, and exercised that power by taking revenge on their political enemies. New laws … Read more
Bands with siblings are definitely a thing, though bands of all siblings are few and far between — The Jackson 5, The 5 Browns and Hanson. It's safe to say that, short of being a trio of brothers (Lain, Van and Jennings Carney), psychedelic outfit Pontiak, from Virginia, shares little with those other sib groups. … Read more
I could tell you a thing or two about Sam Lewis, the Nashville-based singer-songwriter who will treat the Isis Retaurant and Music Hall to his seamless blend of country, Southern rock, and soul on Thursday, Aug. 29. But he’s done a much better job of it on “Southern Greek Tragedy” off his self-titled debut. “That’s … Read more
Folk, punk, gypsy-jazz, soul and brass sounds all find a place in the sonic gumbo that is Redmond, Ore.-based Larry and His Flask. Worth noting: There is no Larry to be found among the five members (brothers Jeshua and Jamin Marshall with Ian Cook, Andrew Carew and Dallin Bulkley). There is, likely, a flask or … Read more
Flat Rock-based Americana trio Letters to Abigail (James Harrell, Kelli "Mae" Redmond and Lauren Bandy) raised $15,000 through Kickstarter to record their debut LP, Say Anything, at Echo Mountain Studios. They brought in guests like Steep Canyon Rangers' fiddler Nicky Sanders and Jimmy Buffett's pedal steel player Doyle Grisham for the record, which the band … Read more
Montford Park Players closes out its summer season with a blockbuster of a production: A story of "treachery, revenge, incest, moral corruption, duty and madness," as the theater troupe's website puts it. That dark thriller, aka Shakespeare's Hamlet, is the bard's longest play and, even today, is among his most performed. It tells of the … Read more
