Join us at the Floyd Country Store at noon this Saturday, March 8 for Americana Afternoon. Guests include Steph Stewart Duo at 12:00 pm, Ron Ireland at 1:30 pm, and Neptune’s Car at 2:30 pm. Admission is free.
12:00 pm: Steph Stewart Duo (of Steph Stewart and the Boyfriends)
Steph Stewart is haunting, post-Appalachain lull married to sweet and smoky honky-tonk. Her ethereal twang feeds an audience, easing into the gut like honey, accented by hoppy mandolin picking and bright fiddle melodies. Together, Steph and her boyfriends deliver a haunting sound both unique and strangely familiar, fusing old Appalachia and top-shelf Americana.
1:30 pm: Ron Ireland – Handmade Music
“I’m a soulful, rootsy folk singer. I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. I really dig Jerry Garcia and Guy Clark.” ~ Ron Ireland
Ron Ireland is a singer-songwriter based in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. He was a shy and lonely kid until he found an old Silvertone guitar with three strings and taught himself to play. He started writing songs in the late 1960s, but the necessities of life interrupted his music until 2007, when he picked up his resonator guitar and started writing and performing again. Ron’s voice is a gentle, time-worn instrument, with hope and cynicism coexisting in every note. He is also a fingerpicking-style guitarist with wide musical range. An admirer of the guitar style John Fahey called “American Primitive”, Ron calls his own style “American Clumsy.” His lyrics are punctuated with literary references and jokes. His melodies and chord choices are beautiful, and often surprising. Ron says his songs feature “a touch of country, a little blues, a pinch of rockabilly, and some old fashioned finger picking folk songs.” [Photo by Susi Lawson Photography ]
2:30 pm: Neptune’s Car
Neptune’s Car (Holly Hanson and Steve Hayes) is an acoustic duo from Massachusetts and New Hampshire who play original, Contemporary Folk music. The duo has become known for their intimate performance style, carefully crafted lyrics, generous harmony singing, and exceptional guitar picking.
Highlights include:
2013 – Winner – Simple Gifts Coffee House Performer’s Showcase
2011 – Selected for a NERFA Quad Showcase (1st alternate)
2010 – #1 song on Folk radio for September – “Lighthouse Keeper”