The Brown Mountain Lights

The Brown Mountain Lights:
"Blacktop Tar"
(from Late Show at the Cave 2004. Buy it.)
"Time Travelling"
(from Ghosts of the Old North State, 2006 [forthcoming])

Back to the rootsy Americana stuff now, here's the Brown Mountain Lights, a versatile group whose twangy songs blend blues, honky tonk, blues, pop, and bluegrass influences. They feature strong vocal harmonies and plenty of fiddle and steel guitar. I guess you could call it electrified back-porch music. "Blacktop Tar" is a great country-swing number from the band's 2004 live CD, which made No Depression's "Best of 2004" list. "Time Travelling" is a driving song (i.e., about driving, though it's got a stong beat, too...), a preview of their new album, which should be out sometime in the near future. There's plenty more to download here here and here, so if you're liking this (and you should), go crazy.

Fun facts: The band formed in 2001 to open for Buddy and Julie Miller, so there' s an auspicious beginning. Guitarist Jeff Hart used to play in Chris Stamey's band, and Brown Mountain Lights covers the dB's"Nothing is Wrong". Two of their songs were featured on Veronica Mars earlier this year.

Their next performance is Saturday (7/15), at the Saxapahaw Farmer's Market. It sounds like a really nice time -- buy some fruit and veg, have a picnic, listen to the band out in the country down by the Haw River. Music starts at 6:00.