Feedback: The Hackensaw Boys are back with a brand new album.

Wednesday 7/13

music

Beleza Duo. Samba soul with Madeline Holly-Sales on vocals and keys, and Berto Sales on guitar, voice, and loops. Free, 7pm. The Bebedero, 225 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thebebedero.com Hard Swimmin’ Fish. Roots and blues. Free, 6:30pm. The Whiskey Jar, 227 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thewhiskeyjarcville.com King Golden Banshee. The conglomerate of musicians performs for Irish Wednesday. Free, 5:30pm. The Pub at Lake Monticello, 51 Bunker Blvd., Palmyra. lakemonticello golf.org Savannah Conley. With Secondhand Sound. $15, 7:30pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com Shane Cooley & Lori Ellen. Performing original music for the Sleep On Your Floor Tour in support of Shane’s new album, Forest, and single, “Stella Ray.” Free, 6pm. Durty Nelly’s, 2200 Jefferson Park Ave. durtynellyscharlottesville.com Vincent Zorn. Performing live on the patio. Free, 6:30pm. Red Pump Kitchen, 401 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. redpumpkitchen.com

dance

C’ville Bachata Social. Dance the evening away with the hottest bachata, salsa, merengue, cha cha, cumbia, reggaeton tunes, and more. Free, 6:30pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarm andwinery.com

words

Storytime in the Garden with JMRL. Bring a blanket or chairs for an outside storytime, followed by a guided tour of the garden. Free, 10am. Botanical Garden of the Piedmont, 950 Melbourne Rd. piedmontgarden.org

outside

Archaeology Plantation Walking Tour. Join archaeologists on a walking tour to hidden parts of the plantation, and learn how archaeology informs our understanding of the lives of those who lived and worked at Monticello. Included with admission, 1:30pm. Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. monticello.org Farmers in the Park. Local farmers with seasonal produce and meats, cut and potted flowers, baked goods, hot meals, value-added products, prepared food, and crafts. Free, 3pm. Farmers in the Park, 300 Meade Ave. charlottesville.gov Wind Down Wednesday. Acoustic music, food trucks, and a stunning Charlottesville sunset. $5, 6pm. Carter Mountain Orchard, 1435 Carters Mountain Trl. chilesfamily orchards.com

etc.

Family Film Series. Featuring perennial favorites alongside modern classics. Free, 11am. Violet Crown Cinema, 200 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. violetcrown.com Tour The Paramount Theater. Dig into the historic theater’s history on a backstage tour. Free, 11am and 5:30pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net

Thursday 7/14

music

Berto and Vincent. Wild gypsy rumba and Latin guitar. Free, 7pm. The Bebedero, 225 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thebebedero.com

SUPPLIED PHOTO

With its first new album in six years, The Hackensaw Boys’ David Sickmen (right) says the new lineup brings the same vibe and energy to live shows. The eponymously named record was released on June 24, and the Boys take the stage at The Southern Café & Music Hall on August 11.

The Boys are back in town

The Hackensaw Boys release first full-length since 2016

By Shea Gibbs

arts@c-ville.com

David Sickmen and The Hackensaw Boys have been a lot of things to a lot of people over their two-decade run. But they’ve never forgotten where they’re from.

“When we go out in the world, I still say the band is from Charlottesville,” Sickmen says. “Charlottesville was a magical place in the mid-’90s and into the early 2000s. I can’t imagine the band could have formed in any other place.”

Sickmen and his updated lineup of roots rockers—Caleb Powers on fiddle and vocals, Chris Stevens on bass, Jonah Sickmen on percussion, and Park Chisholm on backing guitar and vocals—released their new self-titled album on June 24. It had been six years since an LP bore the Hackensaw name.

Upon their recent return from Europe, Sickmen and his stringmen announced a stateside tour for the new record, along with a slight personnel change. Playing bass for the shows, which include local dates at The Southern Café and Music Hall on August 11 and Devils Backbone Basecamp Brewpub on October 7, is Chicago import Aaron Smith.

“We still play some of the old songs, and we play new songs,” Sickmen says. “The band and the shows still have the same energy— high energy. It’s still a Hackensaw Boys show. It’s the same vibe it has always been.”

Indeed, change is no new riff for the Boys from central Virginia. The band boasts nearly two dozen past members. Some of those, like John R. Miller and Pokey LaFarge, have gone on to successful solo careers. Others have moved on to even bigger bands; founding member and multi-instrumentalist Tom Peloso joined Modest Mouse in 2003.

Sickmen, the only founding Hackensaw remaining, has dealt with his own ups and downs over the years. Six years in with the band, he left in 2005 for mental health reasons. He came back six years later, and has played and sung with the Hackensaw Boys continuously over the last decade. In the meantime, he’s been challenged with vocal polyps, an ongoing issue he’s had surgery to correct.

With a lack of consistent members, Sickmen has struggled with what the band is exactly. About four years ago, he was working on an EP, A Fireproof House of Sunshine, and he asked himself whether he was using The Hackensaw Boys name in good faith. The songs were taking on a more personal, songwriter’s touch, and he didn’t know if it was Hackensaw material.

Sickmen did some soul searching. “I thought to myself, ‘What am I going to do, man?’” Sickmen says. “I have done enough solo shows to know how hard it is to be the solo guy with the guitar. But I also thought, ‘Am I a poser if I continue to carry the name Hackensaw Boys?’”

Sickmen eventually plunged ahead, using the band name with no reservations. He’d been there since the beginning. He’d put 13 years of his life into The Hackensaw Boys. He’d put his family through all the touring and difficult times. Damn right he was going to use the name.

A Fireproof House of Sunshine became something of a turning point. Hackensaw records will always feature some foot-stomping fiddle-racers and raunchy, punked-up alt-country tracks complete with the infamous charismo, a percussion instrument a former band member invented by piecing together cans and scrap metal. But the band has matured along with Sickmen. The lyrics on the new record often find him struggling with the ravages of time specifically. ”No one wants to live in the past,” he sings on “Things We’re Doing.” Then, in “Cages We’re Grown In”: “The clock in your head will not let you go.” The pacing and melodies in songs like “My Turn” and “All I Really Want to Do’’ find a slow cadence that Sickmen reluctantly admits.

“I am 53 years old at this point. Hopefully I am maturing at least a little bit,” he says. “It is very much a songwriter’s album.”

A songwriter. It’s something Sickmen says he’s only recently gotten comfortable calling himself. He says he tries hard to stay humble, but he’s finally decided he’s earned the right to the title.

So, what does a songwriter do, even after more than 20 years in a band that has changed seemingly with the seasons?

“I have been trying to write songs for most of my adult life. I don’t seem to ever get tired of it,” Sickmen says. “I hate to sound pretentious, but I can’t help myself. It is what I do. And when I say I am a songwriter, it’s because I am writing songs. I’m not relying on my past.”

SKYLINE CHIMNEY SERVICE SERVICES OFFERED

Sweeping Camera Inspection Custom and Standard Caps Leaky Chimney Diagnostic and Repair Masonry Repairs Liner Installation Flue Resurfacing Wood Stove Installation Fireplace Repair (540) 292-3579 Reach me through call or text! Skylinechimneyservice.com

HERE COME THE BRIDES

SPRING / SUMMER 2022

Plan on!

A month-bymonth guide to the big day

PAGE 24

Five inspiring wedding vibes, from rustic glam to '80s South Beach

Prettyparty

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 25

Thursday 7/14

Pandemonium Day with The Silas Fray-

ser Duo. Free yourself from stress and let loose for the evening with music from the Silas Frayser Duo. Free, 5:30pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd. batesville market.com Sunset Thursday with Gene Temple. Live music and wine. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwood farmandwinery.com

words

Reckoning: A Series on U.S. Presidents

and Racial Inequality. Explore the views and political policies of presidents toward minority populations, with an in-depth focus on how each of these minority groups was affected. Free, 7pm. Online. woodrowwilson.org

outside

Archaeology Plantation Walking Tour.

See listing for Wednesday, July 13. Included with admission, 1:30pm. Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. monticello.org Sunset Market. Explore local vendors’ fresh produce, grab dinner from a food truck, enjoy artisan goods, make art at the outdoor art room, relax with a craft cocktail in The Looking Glass, and more. Free, 4:30pm. Ix Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. ixartpark.org

Tailgate Thursdays with Susie and the

Pistols. Enjoy a laid-back evening in the vineyard with live music, wine, oysters from Salty Bottom Blue Oysters, and BYO lawn games, picnic blankets, and food to grill. Free, 6pm. Stinson Vineyards, 4744 Sugar Hollow Rd., Crozet. stinsonvineyards.com Thursday Evening Sunset Series. Live music, food trucks, Carter Mountain Wine, Bold Rock Hard Cider, and a beautiful view of the sunset. $10, 6pm. Carter Mountain Orchard, 1435 Carters Mountain Trl. chiles familyorchards.com

etc.

Arts From Underground. Artmaking, drinks, and karaoke inside The Looking Glass. Free, 7pm. Ix Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. ixartpark.org

Paramount at the Movies Presents: Butch

Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Paul Newman and Robert Redford set the standard for the buddy film with this box office smash set in the Old West. $5-8, 2 and 7pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net Whodunnit Mystery Art Heist. Everyone is a suspect at this interactive murder mystery event where you play a character, solve clues, and interrogate all of the suspects. $50, 7pm. Pikasso Swig Craft Bar, 333 Second St. SE. pikassoswig.com

Friday 7/15

music

Carter Freeman. Live music and wine. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmand winery.com Fridays After Five: Cherry Red. With Josh Mayo & The House Sauce. Free, 5:30pm. Ting Pavilion, 700 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. tingpavilion.com Gooey Gumdrops. An all-boy tribute to girl groups of the early ’60s. Free, 6pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glasshousewinery.com

SummerStage No. 7: The Arcadian Wild.

The progressive “new-grass” pioneers bring their tight harmonies and fast pickin. Free, 6pm. The Blackburn Inn and Conference Center, 301 Greenville Ave., Staunton. blackburn-inn.com The Wavelength. Pull into the Offbeat Roadhouse for an hour of live blues and vintage rock. Free, 8pm. WTJU, 2244 Ivy Rd. wtju.net

dance

Kizomba Fridays. An open community social to learn about kizomba dance and music. Free, 8pm. Ashtanga Yoga of Charlottesville, 906 Monticello Rd. @core4 kizomba

stage

Little Women. The Virginia Theatre Festival presents Little Women by Kate Hamill, adapted from the novel by Louisa May Alcott, and directed by Aubrey Snowden. $15-50, 7:30pm. Ruth Caplin Theatre, 109 Culbreth Rd. virginiatheatrefestival.org

Shakespeare at the Ruins: As You Like

It. Four County Players bring to life Shakespeare’s play about women disguised as men, mistaken identities, love at first sight, amorous shepherds, impossible coincidences, and multiple marriages. $23-25, 7pm. Barboursville Vineyards, 17655 Winery Rd., Barboursville. fourcp.org

words

Charlottesville Reading Series: Kristen-Paige Madonia and Amber McBride.

The young adult authors read from their works. Free, 7pm. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. ndbookshop.com

outside

Archaeology Plantation Walking Tour.

See listing for Wednesday, July 13. Included with admission, 1:30pm. Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. monticello.org Summer Sundown. Watch the summer sun descend behind the Blue Ridge Mountains with acoustic music from local performers. Free, 5pm. Chiswell Farm & Winery, 430 Greenwood Rd., Greenwood. chilesfamilyorchards.com

etc.

Drag Bonanza presents: The Roast of

Bebe Gunn. Hosted by Miss Bebe Gunn and Cherry Poppins. $12, 8pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com

Ix Flix Free Summer Film Series: Moon-

rise Kingdom. Artmaking, activities, food trucks, cold drinks, and outdoor screening of your favorite movies. Free, 6pm. Ix Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. ixartpark.org

Saturday 7/16

music

Berto & Vincent. Brunch and wild gypsy rumba and Latin guitar. Free, 11am. Tavern & Grocery, 333 W. Main St. tavernand grocery.com Broadway at Belfield. A concert of Broadway favorites performed by the Ader Emerging Artists, accompanied by Stephen Carey and hosted by Tenor Richard Troxell. $10-50, 7:30pm. Grisham Hall, St. Anne’s Belfield School, 2132 Ivy Rd. charlottesville opera.org Chamomile & Whiskey. Americana, blues, Celtic, old-time, and the singer-songwriter traditions of the South. $12-15, 5pm. Rivanna River Company, 1538 E. High St. frontporchcville.org