All About the Beat: Music in Asheville
You know you have arrived in Asheville North Carolina because music spills into the streets around every turn. Whether it’s from the buskers playing their hearts out on street corners for tips or jams catching your ear while walking past bars like Tressa’s that offer live music most nights, Asheville is a city that fosters all kinds of sounds. While Nashville is known for country music and cities New York and Chicago for Jazz, Asheville makes mountain music; turning out jam-band meets bluegrass meets rock style tunes that are unique to this city. But what’s really cool about Asheville is there is more to do than just listening to music live at a club. You can also learn about the beats that have been recorded here over the decades at a vintage studio. Or have an interactive experience, where you find out if you have what it takes to play an instrument by joining in an African drum lesson turned jam session.
See a Show at the Oldest Music Venue in Town
Asheville is filled with iconic music venues, but one stands out for being the first. Gray Eagle is the oldest music venue in town, and has been open now for some 22-years. It features mainly traveling regional and national headliners, but many of the opening acts are local and this is a great way to hear up-and-coming talent – you’ll hear everything from bluegrass to jazz, indie to mainstream rock, folk to blues. Located on the outskirts of the very happening River Arts District, it is close enough to walk to from downtown, but far enough away to make it feel set apart, and should you wish to drive, parking is definitely easier around here.
The venue can accommodate up to 600 people, making it a pretty intimate place to hear some bigger name bands. I love the ambiance here as well. It feels very down-to-earth with the owner, Russ, out back roasting pork before the show to put in the tacos Gray Eagle serves at its onsite taquiera. There are also several different local microbrews on tap – Asheville is also known for its craft beer scene. Some shows are standing room only, while others are seated, depending on the artist’s preference. I recommend trying to see a seated show, where folding chairs are set in rows with some standing room spots in the back. I like this because it lets you sit down and enjoy a show instead of fighting crowds trying to jostle to the stage.
A Former Theatre is Turned Music Venue
Speaking of the stage, another excellent live music venue is the family-run Isis Theater is West Asheville. Originally a former theater that closed in 1957, than became an Italian restaurant, before Scott Woody purchased it in 2010, renovated it, and turned it into a restaurant and music venue. Because the building was originally built as a theater, the acoustics at this family run venue (Woody runs it with his daughter Josephine and son Harris) are hard to match. They do live music almost every night in various locations – there are shows in the lounge, bands on the main stage and when the weather is good, also out on the patio, meaning there can be three different experiences to have in one night. Both local and touring bands are showcased, and the genres range from punk to Celtic!
What I love most about this venue, however, is that they serve dinner before the shows along with a huge range of mostly local craft beers – there are some 35 different beer choices on the menu along with cocktails. The food is also varied. Try the bruschetta to start. There are a number of options, but the mushroom is my favorite. This region is known for growing excellent mushrooms – people come from all over to forage for funghi in the Asheville area actually – and the mushrooms topping this perfectly crisped bread taste very fresh. Some shows are seated here, as they are at Gray Eagle, and if you book one of these I like sitting on the main floor, which is closer to the stage, although there is also seating on the second floor balcony, which provides a different perspective of the stage.
Look for Isis in West Asheville, about 10 minutes from downtown on Haywood Road. It’s in an area that is seeing revitalization with lots of just opened shops, restaurants and bars, making it a fun neighborhood to wander around for an evening.
Vintage Recording Studio
Head back to Asheville’s very walkable Downtown area to learn about the history behind the music recorded in Asheville. Echo Mountain Recording Studio is a full-service commercial recording studio that still lets artists record in analog, along with digital. The studio, which first opened its doors a decade ago, works with a lot of local talent, but has also hosted stars like Dierks Bentley, Avett Brothers, Joni Mitchell and The Zach Brown Band, who have all recorded here.
I love the fact that Echo Mountain still lets artists record on 2-inch analog tape, which offers a different sound that straight digital (which is also available). They also have vintage consoles and recording gear with lots of history to them – notable songs recorded on the sound boards here include Captain & Tennille’s “Love Will Keep Us Together” and Barbra Streisand’s “Butterfly.” Even the buildings housing the studios have a historic flair. One studio is located in what used to be the United Methodist Church, constructed back in 1926, while the second studio is housed in Asheville’s original Salvation Army building that also has an artsy energy – it served as a dance studio for about 30-years before it became part of Echo Mountain, and rumor has it that Mikhail Baryshnikov once danced here.
Learn to Play African Drums
Also located downtown is Skinny Beats Drum Shop & Gallery, where you can learn to play music, now that you’ve heard it live, and seen where it’s recorded. You won’t need a GPS to find the African drum class, just follow the sound of the music come Sunday at 2pm or Wednesdays at 6pm. Classes are open to newcomers, and are affordable at $15 for a group lesson. Private 45-minute lessons can also be scheduled for $30. I signed up for the later and owner Billy Zanski taught me to play two different African drums. The first was Djembe, which is a goblet shaped skin covered drum played with the hands. During the lesson, Billy showed me some basic patterns and correct drumming technique. Next, we tried out the Dunun. It is another African drum, but this one is played with a stick. It’s here that I feel myself start to let loose and mind go. At the beginning of the lesson, Billy had told me, in reference to drumming: “It’s healing and it’s grounding. It does something to help you find your inner rhythm.” Even after one lesson, I learned this rang true.
I also learned that finding a beat in Asheville is oh so easy to do. From listening to live music to learning to play it, there is no shortage of opportunities to experience a myriad of sounds in this eclectic mountain music town in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina.
