Town Mountain, a band whose sound is raw and soulful with plenty of swagger, is coming to Athens to host a live, exhilarating performance.
At Stuart’s Opera House, 52 Public Square, Nelsonville, on Saturday, Aug. 28, at 8 p.m., the group will be performing their hard-driving sound and in-house songwriting.
The modern bluegrass band from Asheville, NC., is welcomed back by Stuart’s for their last performance was right before the COVID-19 shutdown in March of 2020. Chloe Musick, marketing and public relations director at Stuart’s Opera House, said the entertaining band is always looked forward to by Athens’ residents.
“Many people, myself included, are hungry for that sense of community – to continue building that, feeling connected to something and enjoying something, like live music,” Musick said. “There's a lot of doom and gloom in the world right now and music sort of gets your dopamine pumping again. It's more important than ever.”
Zach Smith, Town Mountain’s bass player, said the band loves to come back to Athens. He said the band had played at the Nelsonville Music Festival and Stuart’s in the past, and it was nothing less than a good time.
Smith said during the COVID-19 pandemic the band tried their best to find any rehearsal time they could and work on their craft, despite being in a slump due to the adjustments regarding the pandemic. The band brainstormed new ways to practice their music and the pandemic made the members realize they would never take playing in front of people for granted.
After many long months of adjusting to the new normal, the band recently wrapped up a new record in Nashville, TN, keeping them busy and excited for what’s to come. Smith said the record brings an array of sound to the table, providing a different approach to music from what they’ve done in the past. The record won’t be released for a while, but Smith said the band is excited to share their art with more people.
For the time being, Town Mountain has an exciting setlist for the people of Athens. Smith said they’ll be performing songs from the new album, previous albums, new cover songs and classic hometown favorites.
“Stuart’s has a very special energy around it that you don't see every day,” Smith said. “First of all when I played Nelsonville fest, when we came back and played Stuart’s, we just felt the energy and the love of that crowd. They were both special nights for me that got stuck in my mind. I'm excited to create that again and share that with people again. It's such a special place.”
Phil Barker, Town Mountain’s mandolin player and one of the vocalists, also said he was excited to once again have a memorable time in Athens.
"We're definitely looking forward to getting back to Stuart's,” Barker said in an email. “The room has such a cool, historic vibe with great natural acoustics and a great crew running sound and production ... and of course our Ohio crowd always brings the energy! This was one of our last shows before covid so the return is extra special for us."
Reserved seats are $18.00 in advance and $23.00 at the door, and Box seats are $23.00 in advance and $28.00 at the door. More information on purchasing tickets can be found on Stuart’s website.
“We're just trying to expose more people to our music, and the music that we love to write and create,” Smith said.
