Speed Stick
The Carrboro, NC supergroup Speed Stick is an ever-evolving project among a group of friends—Ash Bowie (Polvo), Charles Chace (The Paul Swest), Laura King (Bat Fangs), and Thomas Simpson (The Love Language)—whose musical achievements reach back as far as the 1990s. But as its live shows attest, the band does not want to rehearse old accomplishments. On stage, Speed Stick wants to shatter epochs. Step into a world of thunder where lighting strikes rewire nervous systems. Ride waves with peaks that precede disquieting calms. Float in spaces where dark and light collide to set blood afire. To participate in a Speed Stick show is to enter a space of bodily and psychological endurance. Off-kilter guitar riffs shadow the raging intensity of drums; blistering drum beats dance to the feedback of guitars.The songs for Volume One were created in unusual fashion over the course of a year. Initially, Speed Stick only consisted of two drummers. They distributed nine studio tracks and a single live track to select musicians. The musicians’ task was simple: draw inspiration from the beats in order to create music that spreads laterally and horizontally like a rhizome. Indeed, Volume One has utterly discarded the yoke of genre by instead tethering intricate, interlocking drums to myriad creative personalities: Mac McCaughan (Superchunk), Kelley Deal (The Breeders, R. Ring), Mike Montgomery (R. Ring), Stuart McLamb (The Love Language). But no one can stop with just the album. Your ears will yearn to see the shapes of sound and your eyes will beg to taste color. For what Volume One heralds is that the supergroup Speed Stick is the super show of shows.Bandcamp | Facebook Saul Goode spent the better part of a decade navigating the music industry in Seoul, South Korea with rap duo Part Time Cooks. The international duo became the first foreign hip hop act to be signed to a major Korean label, and released music and performed alongside some of the biggest names in South Korea and Japan. Following a successful run to the semi-finals on Jay Park’s TV show ‘Sign Here,’ the pandemic landed Saul back in his hometown of North Carolina. It was there in Chapel Hill, NC where he began writing music in his native tongue again and finished recording his second solo album entitled ‘Sebastian.’ Bursting with introspective lyrics on the difficulties that came with returning home after things didn’t turn out quite as planned, the project is definitely his strongest to date. Produced by e.m.p.c, ‘Sebastian’ is one of the most complete offerings in recent memory. The album features New York emcee The Musalini, as well as instrumentation from Saul’s brother and father, talented jazz musicians also living in the triangle area.
John Howie Jr. & the Rosewood Bluff
The Return of…John Howie Jr. and the Rosewood Bluff (Schoolkids Records, 2025) heralds the reappearance of North Carolina’s finest honky tonkin’, soulful country-rockers. 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of John Howie Jr.’s iconic career as a bandleader / singer / songwriter, from the legendary Two Dollar Pistols through to the Rosewood Bluff, with a 2018 solo album thrown in for good measure. Howie has built a legacy of authentic, roots-driven country music. The Rosewood Bluff’s five-piece lineup features Nathan Golub on pedal steel guitar, Tim Shearer on electric guitar, Mark Connor on bass, Dave Hartman (Southern Culture on the Skids) on drums, and Howie on rhythm guitar, with the whole outfit fueled by his rich baritone on lead vocals. Their sound shifts effortlessly between honkytonk shuffles, driving country-rock numbers, and deep soul ballads. The album’s 12 tracks explore the struggles and resilience of underdogs navigating life’s complexities. With heartfelt storytelling, The Return of… reaffirms Howie’s place as a master of honky-tonk, offering hope and grit for these challenging times. The album was released on April 18th, 2025. Website | Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram
Madison Cunningham – The Ace Tour
Depending on the game, an Ace can be the highest or lowest card, zero or infinity. A breakup feels similar—one path crumbles, while all others remain infinitely possible. How do you write about heartbreak when you’re going through it? Ace, GRAMMY award-winner Madison Cunningham’s third record for Verve Forecast, tracks every part of it: falling out of love, having your heart broken, and then falling in love again. Co-produced by Cunningham and Robbie Lackritz (Feist, Rilo Kiley, Bahamas, Peach Pit), the fourteen-track album is honest and full of heart, even as it breaks. Ace builds off of the success of Revealer (2022), a darkly funny portrait of an artist that won Cunningham her GRAMMY for “Best Folk Album,” but it is a different record. A slow burn until it wasn’t. It follows a period of writer’s block. On Revealer and her debut album Who Are You Now (2019), Cunningham says that she was writing songs about heartbreak, but they weren’t about her heartbreak. They were sketches, observations. Cunningham wanted Ace to be emotions first. Heartbreaking and lush and bold. Cunningham’s first single from Ace, “My Full Name,” was released to praise by PASTE who calls the lyrics, “simultaneously sprawling and intimate,” recalling “an ancient work of poetry.” On Ace, which Cunningham serves as co-producer, she wanted piano to move into the foreground. “I wanted it to feel like a mountain peak,” says Cunningham, “I wanted Ace to feel like a mountain we built together.” Ace is a record that feels alive and lush in all the ways Cunningham hoped for when she started writing. It is a record of mastery and honesty. Cunningham loves every single song on it. You can tell. Website | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok | YouTube | Spotify
Dr. Bacon
Founded in the streets, bars, and wild house parties of Boone in 2013, Dr. Bacon is an Appalachian Funk Rock group currently based in Asheville, NC. The Dr. Bacon live experience is truly a spectacle to behold—bringing audiences on a musical journey that lulls and spikes in energy and caresses ears with lush beauty that whips crowds into a tribal romp, shakes booties, and sheds inhibitions. This manic versatility ensures that no matter what genre of music audience members identify with most, everyone will hear something that resonates. MEMBERS:Myles Dunder: Lead Vocals, Saxophones, GuitarsBen New: Percussion, VocalsMatthew Gornto: Bass, VocalsJohn Kirby: Lead Guitar, Vocals Website | YouTube | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram
Winyah
Hailing from a small South Carolina beach town, Winyah emerged onto the music scene in early 2023 and has swiftly made their mark. They’ve shared stages with acclaimed artists such as The Red Clay Strays, The Vegabonds and The Stews, while also shredding festivals like Bonnaroo. Winyah’s live performances are a testament to their distinctive blend of indie and southern rock, featuring electrifying guitar solos and soulful vocals reminiscent of icons like Led Zeppelin, The Backseat Lovers, and flipturn. The band draws its name from Winyah Bay, a cherished landmark in their hometown where all five members spent their formative years. Their music is a reflection of the five rivers that converge into Winyah Bay, capturing the eternal summer vibes of their coastal upbringing. On the surface, Winyah delivers youthful energy and raw power, but their music also delves into themes of nostalgia and the bittersweet longing for childhood memories and cherished places. Website | Instagram | YouTube | Spotify
Jake Xerxes Fussell
This is a partially seated show. Reared in Georgia and now settled in North Carolina, Jake Xerxes Fussell has established himself as a devoted listener and contemplative interpreter of a vast array of so-called folk songs, lovingly sourced from a personal store of favorites. On his latest album, When I’m Called—his first LP for Fat Possum, and his first as a parent—Fussell returns to a well of music that holds lifelong sentimental meaning, loosely contemplating the passage of time and the procession of life’s unexpected offerings. The album was produced by James Elkington and mixed by Tucker Martine. In addition to Elkington, it features the playing of Ben Whiteley (The Weather Station), Joe Westerlund (Bon Iver, Califone), and others. Blake Mills contributes guitars on several tracks. Joan Shelley and Robin Holcomb provide backing vocals. “…Fussell is the rare contemporary to approach folk in its pure form, shunning self-penned compositions about bummer relationships to concentrate on material handed down from bygone, hardened times.” – The New Yorker “(Fussell) is one of the great magpies of American song, collecting forgotten, tarnished gems with a folklorist’s zeal… his renditions aren’t so much cover versions as composites…” – The Guardian “…maybe the leading interpreter of American folk music right now.” – Ann Powers, NPR Website | Instagram | Facebook | Spotify | Tidal
Lamont Landers
When Lamont Landers steps up to the microphone, he doesn’t just sing—he commands the room. His songs are filled with raw, undeniable truth, shaped by a quiet rise from small-town Alabama to the spotlight—on his own terms. With a powerhouse voice that soars sky-high, he pours every ounce of himself into each note, channeling pain, passion, and poetry through waves of booming soul, electrifying rock ‘n’ roll, and smoldering R&B. Hailing from Decatur, AL, music shaped his earliest memories. A natural-born performer, Lamont first picked up a guitar as a teenager. His breakout came with a viral cover of Ray Charles’ “Hit The Road Jack”—racking up over half a million views overnight. From there, his rise was swift: electrifying audiences on America’s Got Talent and Showtime at the Apollo while amassing a loyal following of over half a million fans on TikTok. A repost of his cover of “Rubber Band Man” by Questlove caught the attention of GRAMMY® Award-winning producer Dave Cobb, leading to an invitation to record in Savannah, GA—and ultimately, a deal with Cobb’s Republic Records imprint, Lucile. With millions of streams on original tracks like “Love and Happiness,” “Piece of Me,” and “Into The Fold,” Lamont is ready to officially introduce himself with new music in 2025. Website | Instagram | TikTok | YouTube
Jon Spencer
Jon Spencer has been an innovative force in the independent music scene since the mid-80s. An acclaimed live performer, he has toured all the continents except Antarctica and has amassed a dizzying discography as the leader of Pussy Galore, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Heavy Trash, and Jon Spencer & the HITmakers, as well as with Boss Hog, The Honeymoon Killers, The Gibson Brothers, and Taxi Girls. His collaborations include (but are not limited to) working with Steve Albini, Add N To X, Nicole Atkins, Beastie Boys, Beck, Bomb The Bass, R.L. Burnside, James Chance, Coldcut, Chuck D, Dan The Automator, Jim Dickinson, DJ Shadow, Einsturzende Neubauten, Guitar Wolf, GZA, David Holmes, Japanese Popstars, Dr. John, Calvin Johnson, Steve Jordan, Khan, Moby, Money Mark, The Muffs, The North Mississippi All Stars, Princess Superstar, Puffy AmiYumi, The Sadies, Nancy Sinatra, Solex, Solomon Burke, Speedball Baby, Rufus Thomas, UNKLE, Unloved, Andre Williams, and Bernie Worrell. His production credits include: Cheater Slicks, Demolition Doll Rods, Experimental Tropic Blues Band, Perrosky, Mike Edison, Jesper Munk, Sunshine & The Rain, The Bobby Lees, and Samantha Fish & Jesse Dayton. Facebook | Instagram | Bandcamp
Caylee Hammack
An Ellaville, Georgia native, MCA artist Caylee Hammack has racked up almost 275 million career global streams to date, won an ACM Award for Musical Event of the Year (“Fooled Around And Fell In Love” with Miranda Lambert), and picked up Artist to Watch accolades from The Bobby Bones Show, Rolling Stone among other honors. Released earlier this year and named one of the “Best Albums of the Year So Far for 2025” by Rolling Stone, her sophomore album Bed of Roses is a “personal, powerful statement album” (Tennessean) and is “a vulnerable new collection of life lessons” (Audacy) tracking five years of patient growth in her artistry. Penning the must-read counterpart to her album, the songstress expanded her creative horizons with BED OF ROSES, a romance novel co-authored by Hammack and New York Times–bestselling author Carolyn Brown, each chapter correlates to track titles on the album, taking readers on a journey from heartbreak to healing. Hammack has shared stages with Luke Bryan and Brothers Osborne and has performed multiple times to international audiences in Europe. Website | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Spotify | YouTube
Electric Guest
In 2007, Asa Taccone chased his dream to Los Angeles when an established mentor provided a check for $10,000 so the promising ingénue producer could quit his job and pursue music full-time. He incubated this miraculous nest egg until he could subsist and survive off his own songwriting, production, and artistry as one-half of the duo Electric Guest with drummer Matthew “Cornbread” Compton. Electric Guest embrace the same energy, hunger, and mindset that first brought Asa to this point on their aptly titled fourth full-length album, 10K. “10K is back to the basics,” he affirms. “Nobody was in the room or on the record but friends. In a way, it feels like this is actually my first album. This is a full circle moment.” Behind-the-scenes, Asa relentlessly pushed himself as a songwriter and producer, building up a robust catalog in the process. He co-wrote and co-produced Portugal. The Man’s 7x-Platinum “Feel It Still,” earning the band a Top 5 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and a GRAMMY ® Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. His repertoire also expanded with Lily-Rose Depp’s “World Class Sinner / I’m A Freak” for The Weeknd’s The Idol, Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Feels Right,” and more. He’s the rare creative chameleon who can cook up “Cheat Code” for H.E.R. or hilarious viral tentpole tracks for The Lonely Island a la “Natalie’s Rap” with Academy® Award winner Natalie Portman, “Motherlover” with Justin Timberlake, “Here I Go” with Charli XCX, and “3-Way (The Golden Rule)” with Justin Timberlake and Lady Gaga, among others. Simultaneously, Electric Guest racked up over half-a-billion streams across Mondo [2013], Plural [2017], and KIN [2019]. Throughout 2025, he hunkered down and poured his focus into Electric Guest. For as much as he concurrently collaborated with top-tier talent, he actually found the most inspiration much closer to home. Various friends trickled in and out of the Electric Guest sessions, and the music organically took shape primarily recorded at Asa’s home studio. “I’ve come back to the potency of the arts,” he leaves off. “It means so much to me to be able to put out my vibe and whatever insights I have about life and being a human on earth in 2025. Ultimately, it’s an act of hope even if some of the themes are difficult or dark. This is truly a reflection of my energy, personage, and being.” Website | Instagram | TikTok | Facetime | Spotify | YouTube
