11:17 p.m. — Signature Brew Coffee Company
Rising country group to play Franklin
A Lego Extravaganza building contest for f children ages 5 to 15 will debut at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, in Waynesville. It is put on by the Haywood County Public Library. Participants are asked to think of a favorite book and then create an original Lego design related to the book. Then bring your Legos and build your creation on the day of the contest. Participants in the older age divisions (9-11 and 12-15) will compete for prizes and will be judged on the originality and creativity of their construction, and on the quality of their poster presentation/oral report. Ages 5-8 will not be in formal competition. Register this week to participate. The contest will be held at the Haywood
Frog Level Philharmonic Dixieland Jazz Band of Waynesville will give a free concert of spirited renditions of Dixieland classics from the early 20th century to the 1930’s at 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 3, at the Swain County Center for the Arts in Bryson City. Immediately following the concert there will be a reception for Waynesville artist Dominick DePaolo, whose artwork is on exhibit through the end of March. His realistic style evokes a sense of America’s most innocent days, with creations ranging from nostalgic drawings of classic cowboy heroes and western sidekicks. The event is sponsored by the NC Arts Council, Swain County Center for the Arts and Swain County Schools. Free. www.swain.k12.nc.us/cfta.
HART presents Charlie Brown “all-grown-up” “Dog Sees God – Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead” will be hitting the stage at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 1 and 2 and 3 p.m. Feb. 3, at the HART Theatre in Waynesville. Oh, good grief! The Peanuts gang has grown up, and it turns out that life is not a comic strip after all. Ten years removed from childhood, Charlie Brown, Pigpen, Lucy and the
Coasting into the wee hours of Saturday morning, the pub showed no signs of slowing up. Filled to the rafters with college students, local residents and seemingly every nighthawk in Jackson County, the location was buzzing over WCU student Dylan Riddle, a country crooner/guitarist with a voice as deep as a backwoods holler. “The music is blowing up around here,” he said. “I think there really hasn’t been a lot of bands around for awhile, and now there are, and everyone is eating it up.” Riddle said it’s great that such a small mountain college town gets the proper reputation it deserves, one of big things coming in small packages. It’s not about taking a town at face value but looking a little bit closer, a little others are grappling with the issues of teens today. They include a stoner, a homophobe, an arsonist, a Goth performance artist, a couple of slutty, booze-swilling clique leaders and an outcast who finds happiness only at a keyboard. Turning Charles Schulz’s pleasant world into a scathingly funny psychological disaster area, “Dog Sees God” will turn childhood on its head and take you through all the happiness and pain that is the institution of high school. Tickets are $10 per adult and $6 per student. Holdover dates will be Feb. 8-10. 828.456.6322 or harttheater@gmail.com or www.harttheatre.com.
Calling all chocoholics to Bryson City Cooks of all things chocolate will square off at the “Sixth Annual Chocolate Cook-Off” from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Feb. 23, in Bryson City to raise money for the Swain County library. Both amateurs and professionals are invited to enter to win cash prizes. Entries due Feb. 19. Applications available at the Marianna Black Library, the Friends Used Bookstore or online. www.fontanalib.org/brysoncity or 828.488.0580.
Blues-rock spills into WNC Blues guitarist Husky Burnette will be performing at 9:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 25, at the No Name Sports Pub in Sylva and at 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 26, at the Water’n Hole in Waynesville.
Hailing from Chattanooga, Burnette (aka: Rick Saunders) is an accomplished blues musician who has toured extensively around the country, soaking in all the emotion, sorrow and madness he has crossed paths with. Meanwhile, blues duo Yettysburg will also be playing at 9:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 24, at No Name Sports Pub. Originating in North Augusta, S.C., Yettysburg is a newly formed ensemble featuring guitarist/vocalist Shane Davis and upright bassist John DeSousa. Adorned with large beards, the group’s motto is, “There’s not too much you can do to stop two Yettys with microphones.” Both shows at the No Name Sports Pub are free. There will be a $3 cover charge for the Water’n Hole. www.huskyburnette.com or www.reverbnation.com/yettysburg.
Jamey Johnson comes to Harrah’s Acclaimed country star Jamey Johnson will be performing at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, at Harrah’s Cherokee Event Center. The outlaw country singer/songwriter has been quickly rising to the top of the industry during the last decade. With numerous awards and hits, including “In Color” and “Give It Away,” Johnson continues to impress and awe music fans in any direction he may wander in, which these days is his new collaboration tribute album filled with the classic hits of the late Hank Cochran. Tickets are $25 and $35. 800.745.3000 or www.ticketmaster.com or www.jameyjohnson.com.
Smoky Mountain News
Lego building contest stacks up Feb. 2
Dixieland jazz pairs with art exhibit opening
12:40 a.m. — No Name Sports Pub
bit further into what exactly makes this special place tick. Sitting next to Riddle is Kevin Washam, his accompanying guitarist and friend who goes to Appalachian State University. Coming from Boone, a renowned music town in its own right, Washam is in awe at how crazy Sylva is when the mood and sound is just right. “The crowd got so big we had to move to the back room,” he chuckled. “They probably knocked our microphone over like 20 times.” Bartender at No Name, Mary Harper is a key facilitator in the scene. Besides continually letting others know about what’s happening in town on the weekends, Harper emphatically seeks out new and different music to book into the venue. It’s a passion she’s happy to share with her customers and the community at large. “With a college cult following usually found in much larger towns, it’s blooming,” she said. “The roots, character and diversity of the music and its creators here is the richest in the area. To find a business here that doesn’t offer live music on the weekends would not be an easy task.” Heading back to the stage to bring the audience into last call, Riddle is greeted by a jovial roar from the crowd. It’s almost 1 a.m., but these listeners know damn well there’s another hour left to play music, and they want to hear every last minute of it. “[Sylva] may be a tiny dot on the map, and people might not think there’s much going on, but the music is; it really is,” he said.
January 23-29, 2013
Rising country music group Eden’s Edge will take the stage at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 25, at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts in Franklin. Their vibrant sound honors country music’s roots as their dazzling harmonies and insightful songwriting makes them proven hitmakers. f The ensemble, all from Arkansas, won a music f contest sponsored by CMT in 2006 and moved to Nashville. Their first single, “Amen,” was released in 2011 and quickly became the first Top 20 hit for the group. Tickets start at $12 each. www.GreatMountainMusic.com or f 866.273.4615.
County Co-operative Extension Office on Racoon Road. 828.356.2511 or cdennis@haywoodnc.net or www.haywoodlibrary.org.
Overseeing the youthful exuberance, shop owner John Bubacz notes that though venues and stores come and go, the musicians remain and, if anything, multiply as the years go on. “There’s no shortage of excellent players and places that will have people come play in,” he said. “My interest is less as a business owner and more as a community member. You need to keep this town interesting; you need to keep the people healthy with live music.”
arts & entertainment
Main Street corner coffee shop. Drummer Brett Wilson is a senior at the school. He described the local music scene as one that offers plenty of spots to perform, where you could play a venue one night and a college party the next. The options are available, and expanding, to his delight. “First of all, it’s something to do,” he said. “If you don’t have Instrumental trio Diatomic glides through an intimate set in anything to do around Soul Infusion. Garret K. Woodward photo here, people will pick up an instrument and and Greer is enjoying every minute of his time play with anybody. I’d like to see [the scene] immersed in the small mountain town. grow as big as it can.” “This place is great, there’s a lot of music During their set, rapper Logik jumps into around,” he said. “[Soul Infusion] is like a house the mix. The lyricist weaves his intricate words party with a great bar.” into the raucous sound of the band. A group of students collect around him. They cheer him on, shouting for more of what he has to say. Soon, as quickly as he arrived, Logik hands the microphone back over to the Jamunkatrons and heads for the door. “There’s always someone to jam with here,” Back in downtown Sylva, the Jamunkatrons, he said. “I like that there’s so many different peoa WCU trio, are heating up the inside of the ple who want to play. It’s great.”
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