Beloved singer-songwriter Brett Dennen returns to this week’s broadcast of Mountain Stage, but this time with his full touring band. Here he performs the single “Cassidy,” from his new album Por Favor.
You’ll also hear sets by alt-rock trailblazers Cracker, along with Liz Vice, Elephant Revival, and Lords of Liechtenstein.
Like what you hear? Download the entire show right now on the Mountain Stage podcast (just look for Ep. 870). While you’re at it, make sure to subscribe, leave us a rating/review and send us a tweet with your favorite song: we’re @mountainstage.
“We want to always have this doomed artist cliche that doesn’t exist, but there’s always these other individuals as a part of the story as well.”
From West Virginia Public Broadcasting and A Change of Tune, this is 30 Days of #WVmusic, the interview series celebrating the folks who make the West Virginia music scene wild and wonderful.
And today’s interview is with a critically-acclaimed author from Beckley and his unique take on a cult favorite musician from New Cumberland. This… is Scott McClanahan.
I think I experienced it, but it was culture that’s different than what people think of as culture. We have an idea of culture in this state like dulcimers and banjos or progressive ideas about music, and I think the culture I grew up with was gas stations or [the band] Alabama. So, that was like my culture. We saw the Statler Brothers at the state fair five times. What’s wonderful about this place is people play music in the evenings or tell stories in the evenings to keep it alive as opposed to doing it for some profession or to record an album, which always sort of taints it in some way. I had no access to culture, in some ways.
We have the greatest myth in John Henry, and we have the best ghost story in the Greenbrier Ghost. There was a musician my dad always listened to called Mel Street who was from Bluefield, he did some independent releases or maybe stuff for MCA, but he committed suicide. Little Jimmy Dickens, there’s a certain West Virginia connection there. I never looked at it as geographical in that way; my father’s music was classic country, and that was amazing and maybe speaks for the place even though the individuals aren’t from there.
On why he has stayed in West Virginia:
It would be ridiculous if William Faulkner moved to Minnesota. That’d be kind of silly. Not that I would never want to live in Minnesota, “Land of a Thousand Lakes.” I have an Uncle Doug in Minnesota.
But I’m kind of a regional person. I lived in Huntington for a time. I lived in Morgantown for a time, and that doesn’t seem like West Virginia to me. Huntington feels like parts-Kentucky, Ohio and urban West Virginia, and Morgantown is just a college town.
I love cities. I love New York. I love L.A. But I just luckily wound up with a job that lets me stay here. I probably could’ve been like every other person my age that’s taken off, but it’s always been important for me to stay. I’m still close to my parents. I’m sure I’ll have to leave eventually, but there’s a great Terry Bradshaw story where he got drafted to the Steelers and his agent said, “But it’s in Pittsburgh,” and he said, “Where ever I’m at, it’s going to be amazing.” So I’ve sort of had that idea about any place that I’ve lived in.
Credit Roberto Cavolo / Two Dollar Radio
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Page from The Incantations of Daniel Johnston
On the mythology of Daniel Johnston:
He’s this Church of Christ kid, raised in West Virginia and he’s really into the Beatles, which is important. He moved to Texas to live with his brother and started doing these home recordings by himself, which doesn’t seem weird today since it’s the sound of bedroom pop Pitchfork-y type stuff. The stuff he’s doing is even more interesting than the DIY punk stuff of the same era. And he’s playing a chord organ which is that bad musical instrument in every 8th grade music class, and he’s writing these songs.
If we were looking at it from a different angle, you know the mental health issue is brought up which adds a certain element to the music. There’s this insane sort of story where he’s flying home from SXSW, and his father is a pilot and he was having this episode and he crashed his father’s plane. So there’s story after story after story with Johnston like that.
This would’ve been like ’99 probably, someone burned me a bunch of Daniel Johnston songs from Napster, the songs that mean something to me. The traditional greatest hits are not nearly as amazing as the tracks that are hidden, and people don’t know as well or there’s not that kind of childlike sort of wonder gimmick that he has that runs through those early recordings. I’m a music head, and I owned a couple of those tapes on CD.
Music featured in this #WVmusic chat:
Daniel Johnston- “Love will Find You in the End”
Daniel Johnston- “Honey, I Sure Miss You”
Daniel Johnston- “The Story of an Artist”
Support for 30 Days of #WVmusic is provided by Made in WV, a specialty apparel company made by and for proud West Virginians. Online at madeinwv.com.
Support for 30 Days of #WVmusic is provided by Kin Ship Goods, proud supporter of DIY music and the arts. Locally shipped worldwide at kinshipgoods.com.
From West Virginia Public Broadcasting and A Change of Tune, this is 30 Days of #WVmusic, the interview series celebrating the folks who make the West Virginia music scene wild and wonderful.
And today’s interview is with an Appalachian quartet who are creating a new mountain sound for the next generation. This… is Apple Pappy.
<a data-cke-saved-href=”http://applepappy.bandcamp.com/album/apple-pappy” href=”http://applepappy.bandcamp.com/album/apple-pappy”>Apple Pappy by Apple Pappy</a>
How did the band start playing music?
Emily Tanzey (guitar-vocals), Smith Sarver (guitar-vocals,) Ben Williams (mandolin-vocals,) and Greg Mulley (bass) all became friends while attending WVU in Morgantown and were drawn together by a love for Appalachian music and its tradition in storytelling.
Credit Courtesy of the artist
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Apple Pappy
Where does your current band/act name come from?
Ben’s grandfather had apple and peach orchards in Hampshire County, West Virginia. We were also influenced by the phonetic form of “Appalachia.”
How has the band’s sound changed over time (if at all)?
We learned many standards and old time/bluegrass songs before using our music to tell our own (and the mountain’s) stories.
Where does the band play in and around West Virginia (venues, festivals, etc.)?
We tend to play in Morgantown. We played at Cheatfest (Preston County) and Pink Moon Festival (Monroe County) last year, and lately we’ve performed for more private parties and weddings.
Credit Alex Heimbuch
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Apple Pappy
What’s been the highlight of the band’s musical journey thus far?
Opening for the Larry Keel Experience at 123 Pleasant St. was a real thrill. That group really inspires us.
What’s your best advice to anyone starting to make music?
Just with any art, imitating the masters is a good place to start. However, finding your own unique voice and using it to tell the stories of your community is when your art becomes alive.
What’s it like making music in West Virginia?
West Virginia is a tight-knit community across the board. Musicians in the state are generally very supportive of each other and help lift each other up. This is an attitude you will not find in many places. It’s rewarding to make music that resonates with old and young people alike, we all have common ground in our Mountain Mama.
Credit Courtesy of the artist
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Apple Pappy
Do you feel held back by being in West Virginia? Or does it feel like a musically-supportive place?
It is a much smaller pond than Nashville or even Asheville. This can be discouraging, but ultimately the talent and drive of West Virginians is unrivaled. You can’t expect support from a big record label, but you can expect it from your fellow musicians and listeners.
What, in your opinion, needs to happen in the West Virginia music scene for it to move forward?
People are waking up to the beauty of our state and the wonderful ways in which we can combine outdoor adventure, craft brewing and live music. These three areas need to recognize their symbiotic relationship and keep our government focused on tourism and attraction rather than capitalism and extraction.
Support for 30 Days of #WVmusic is provided by Kin Ship Goods, proud supporter of DIY music and the arts. Locally shipped worldwide at kinshipgoods.com.
From West Virginia Public Broadcasting and A Change of Tune, this is 30 Days of #WVmusic, the interview series celebrating the folks who make the West Virginia music scene wild and wonderful.
And today’s interview is with an Appalachian acoustic punk rocker who isn’t afraid to sing about hills, pills and unpaid bills. This… is Sheldon Vance.
<a data-cke-saved-href=”http://sheldonvance.bandcamp.com/album/northbound” href=”http://sheldonvance.bandcamp.com/album/northbound”>Northbound by Sheldon Vance</a>
How did you start playing music?
I started playing solo after almost a decade’s hiatus from music. I spent almost all of my teens and twenties traveling around the country with my old band on DIY tours. When that fell apart, I became disheartened and all but gave up.
But there was an ember that would never die. My wife bought me an acoustic guitar and all but shoved it into my hands. Then a lifetime’s worth of influences and experiences started to come out in song in a way they never did when I was in a band with an amp blasting behind me.
Credit Amanda Miller
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Sheldon Vance
Songs started pouring out, and for the first time in my life, I was writing songs and lyrics that I was truly proud of and knew meant something. And without any intention of going for a particular sound, the music I heard growing up was showing itself in these new songs, including the Appalachian music, gospel, old country and bluegrass that my parents played on the stereo and my dad walked around singing.
I’m not sane or healthy if I’m not playing music; I found that out the hard way. I have to play in order to have a healthy, happy life. I have to have my voice, and songwriting gives me that.
Why did you use your own name to play and perform music?
I tried using a band name or stage name because I was afraid of people thinking I was egotistical. I just couldn’t get past thinking it would be weird to have my given name on shirts and such. But using stage monikers just confused people and muddied things up. So after some prompting from friends and family, I started using my own name.
How has your sound changed over time (if at all)?
I went from full-on, fast, hardcore punk to playing acoustic. It seemed like a big shift, and it was, but I still incorporate some of that energy and spirit into my stage performance even now. I’ve had to learn to embrace the subtleties and differences and not approach everything like I used to in a band. This is a different beast, with its own beauty and merit. I have to let it be what it is and get out of the way sometimes and let the songs and their spirit shine through.
What’s been the highlight of your musical journey thus far?
It’s not any particular show, but the highlight for me is when people started singing my songs back to me on stage. Especially at the all-ages shows, the young kids have so much heart and energy, and they’re there for nothing more than the music. I’d walk away from the mic and down off the stage, singing right into their faces, and they’re singing right back… I’m smiling, and they are too.
I put every fiber of my being into my songs, and they’re a part of me. And to have someone think enough of something you created that they would remember the words, then for the crowd to shout them back to you? I’ll take that to my grave. That means something.
Credit Alexis Faye
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Sheldon Vance
What’s it like making music in West Virginia?
There’s plenty to write about growing up here. I came from Logan County, and hard times were the name of the game. I think those experiences are common here and around the country like any human experience. But locally, there’s little subtle things that us West Virginia musicians pick up on and can rally around. It’s an honest common thread.
Do you feel held back by being in West Virginia? Or does it feel like a musically-supportive place?
There are a ton of roads that lead out of the state if you want to grow your music elsewhere. But it’s a good home base. I’ve never felt like living here specifically held me back; I’m the only one guilty of holding me back.
When me and my friends were younger, there were no bands coming to West Virginia we wanted to see, and we couldn’t get into bars. Instead of crying about it, we put on our own shows. We rented out school gyms, unions halls and community centers, and we booked bands and did our thing. You can’t use where you live as an excuse as to why nothing is happening. Make it happen. You can do it. I’ve seen it done.
There aren’t a ton of venues, but that makes for a more tight-knit scene. You get lost in the mix in bigger cities, and I’ve experienced that firsthand. When you come from a small town like I did, you appreciate the hell out of the bands who come to play on Saturday night. In bigger markets, they have bands playing all the time, and they get jaded.
Credit Amanda Miller
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Sheldon Vance
What, in your opinion, needs to happen in the West Virginia music scene for it to move forward?
Maybe just a touch more unity. It’s getting better, and artists do support one another for the most part. But I do feel like there are folks who hold back on showing the love a little. I think they’re afraid people will confuse their showing support as deferring to someone. But as it stands, I see things moving in a really positive direction more than it ever has.
What’s your advice to anyone starting to make music?
Write honest, real songs. Write about what you know. Mean what you say. Be humble, kind and gracious. Play each show like it might be your last because it very well could.
Sheldon Vance’s latest release is Northbound. Keep an eye (and ear) on his social media for tour dates and new releases. Hear more #WVmusic on A Change of Tune, airing Saturday nights at 10 on West Virginia Public Broadcasting. Connect with A Change of Tune on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. And for more #WVmusic chats, make sure to go to wvpublic.org/wvmusic and subscribe to our RSS / podcast feeds.
Support for 30 Days of #WVmusic is provided by Kin Ship Goods, proud supporter of DIY music and the arts. Locally shipped worldwide at kinshipgoods.com.
“Every community is bound to bare some sort of sound and champion that, but it’s not as definite as it used to be.”
From West Virginia Public Broadcasting and A Change of Tune, this is 30 Days of #WVmusic, the interview series celebrating the folks who make the West Virginia music scene wild and wonderful.
And today’s interview is with a Huntington alt-rock band inspired by the glamour, grit and guitars of the New York music scene. This… is Shenanagram.
How did the band/act start playing music (when, where, why, etc.)?
We started this band in 2012. We all had been in varying bands together prior to forming this group, but as none of those ended up panning out, this project came together. We’re all from the Huntington/Barboursville area and have been friends with each other for some time, so it was a pretty natural formation.
Credit Tyler Cooper
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Shenanagram at Charleston’s The Empty Glass.
What bands have the Shenanagram-ers been in previously?
Orchard Avenue, Lights Out Lucy, Blank Pages and Huntington’s Scroungehound.
And where does the name Shenanagram come from?
A few of us were having drinks when one of us just blurted out the word, and I can’t even remember the context specifically. We liked it a lot more than our old name, so we were pretty eager to suggest the name change. It’s also nice having a name that’s not really a word. We’re easy to search on the internet and brand ourselves, so that’s convenient when trying to spread the word.
How has the band’s sound changed over time (if at all)?
It’s changed pretty drastically over the years. When we first started, we were much more in the vein of bands like Foo Fighters and The Black Keys. We sound incredibly different now. We are very influenced by a lot of New York bands like The Strokes, Television and other CBGB’s stuff. We’re also considering experimenting with electronic instruments in some of the newer material we’ve been working on, which is something we would’ve swore off when we started. I think the changes are exciting, and we’ve become a lot more open to the possibility of change as we’ve expanded our tastes.
Where has the band played in and around West Virginia?
We play mostly in Huntington, as two of us are in school and don’t really have the time to go out and venture much. We’ve played The V-Club, Press Club, Huntington Ale House, Bittersweet Coffeehouse, Blue Parrot, Empty Glass, Muncheez and a local house venue called the Cricket Cave.
Credit Veronica Quezada
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Shenanagram
What’s been the highlight of the band’s musical journey?
I think just having our first official release last year was a big step for us. Actually going into a studio and going through a more legitimate process than just recording stuff at our houses felt like we were doing something more than what we had been doing prior. I think it’s put us into the mindset that we can do something more with this.
Any advice for musicians just starting out?
Write constantly, be prepared to be fluid with changes and don’t fight them. Just get out there and enjoy yourselves.
What’s it like making music in West Virginia?
I don’t feel it has as big of an impact as in the pre-internet era. I think every community is bound to bare some sort of sound and champion that, but it’s not as definite as it used to be. Everyone has access to whatever music they’re keen on, so you’re not bound to the sound of your area. As far as the community itself goes, I think there are plenty of people who support the arts in the area, and I think that community is slowly growing as well, which is exciting.
Credit Sean Seaman
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Shenanagram
Do you feel held back by being in West Virginia? Or does it feel like a musically-supportive place?
I think the area is bound to foster certain sounds and really support the acts the fall within that. I don’t feel that we are necessarily aligned with that sound locally, but I don’t think it hinders us in any sort of major way as well. But we might fare a little better in the Morgantown/Pittsburgh area, where the alternative scene is a little more prominent.
What, in your opinion, needs to happen in the West Virginia music scene for it to move forward?
I think breaking down the barriers of localized scenes would help a lot. When I think of Morgantown, I think of alternative music. When I think of Huntington, I think of Americana/folk. So on and so forth. We live in the digital age where boundaries no longer exist in the fashion that they used to, so making the changes to reflect that would be beneficial to all varieties of arts across the state.
Support for 30 Days of #WVmusic is provided by Kin Ship Goods, proud supporter of DIY music and the arts. Locally shipped worldwide at kinshipgoods.com.
From West Virginia Public Broadcasting and A Change of Tune, this is 30 Days of #WVmusic, the interview series celebrating the folks who make the West Virginia music scene wild and wonderful.
And today’s interview is with the Huntington drummer with the best seat in the house, keeping time for William Matheny and Tyler Childers. This… is Rod Elkins.
I’ve been into music pretty much my entire life. My dad has a band, The Elkins Brothers Band, and ever since I was a little kid, I’d go and watch him play. Mostly at the Milton Fire House or various VFWs, and I would just sit there, swinging my legs. It’s always been around, and I can never think of a time it wasn’t. I started playing drums in the 6th grade, enrolled in band at school and started playing in his band.
I always thought the drums were the coolest instrument on the planet. Every drummer my dad had, they were just cool dudes. I loved to be around them and loved watching them, and I thought it was the best instrument in the band. My dad’s a guitar player, kind of picked that up naturally. He would put one in my hand, teach me a few things, I would download songs off Napster when I came home from school and learn them.
He was really nurturing. I used to teach at Route 60 Music and people would tell me how they bought their kids electronic drum sets because they didn’t want to hear it. I always thought about how my mom and dad gave me a couple of hours to make as much noise as I wanted, but at like 8pm, if it wasn’t done… [laughing]!
On what he listened to growing up:
The classic country, outlaw stuff. My dad is a huge Waylon Jennings fan. I always thought he sounded like him when he sang.
I had a Fisher-Price record player, and I remember as a kid, I was just crawling across the floor, maybe 4- or 5-years-old, I took the Fisher-Price record off and waddled over to a stack of my dad’s records and pulled it out, and it was Creedence Clearwater Revival, one of the greatest hits records, “Down on the Corner,” was the first song. I was pretty hooked after that.
Credit Courtesy of the artist
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Rod Elkins as a Marshall University drummer.
On his jazz studies at Marshall University inform his Americana/rock drumming:
I always wanted to do music in college. I wanted to go to college because not many people in my family went to college. Me and my sisters did. My dad didn’t go; my mom went to beauty school. Staying in town just made sense.
I got really bored with just doing classical performance with symphonic band and percussion ensembles. Not that I don’t like the music or anything, but at the time, I was just really out of it and not really enjoying it. I think I was the only drum set major at the time in jazz studies. I took a little break and came back in 2012 and finished three years ago this December.
It helped playing with different groups, playing something you just got a week ago. Reading, making charts. Sometimes if we want to play a song now, the fastest way for me to learn it is if I jot it down on a piece of paper and chart it out. I got to see a lot of great drummers being in school. We had great faculty, and they would always bring great people in. It was really inspirational seeing them play.
On his favorite drummers:
Levon [Helm], for sure. I’ll never forget… me and Craig Burletic. I was in the music library, and I was supposed to be doing something but I wasn’t actively doing anything, and [Craig] comes in and says, “Dude, you got to stop what you’re doing and listen to this.” And I think it was the Rock of Ages video of The Band doing “Don’t Do It.” It was lifechanging, the way he played, the nuances and the sound he got out of the drums. That and Steve Gadd. I always wanted to play like Steve Gadd ‘cause that guy’s perfect.
Credit Melissa Stillwell
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Rod Elkins performing at The V-Club in Huntington, WV.
On what it means to be a drummer in the band:
Drummer is the bus, that’s what I always thought, and the bass player drives that bus. It’s a team effort, something to lean on. A good drummer doesn’t get in the way of the song. It’s a nice blanket for soloists or singers to lean on and to stay out of the way. That’s always a goal in my head when I play. I feel like I’m naturally strong, and I have to work hard at the drums to stay out of the way. I constantly worry that I’m too loud.
On his first bands playing in the #WVmusic scene:
I was playing in a VFW band called 60 East. I played guitar and sang. It was pretty good, right out of high school. James [Barker] and Craig Burletic had a rock band and a drummer who was moving away. I was late for a math class, and I didn’t go because I was late, I was getting coffee and [Craig] said, “You have to play in my band. I talked to James, and we don’t want anyone else. We want you.” I just wanted to do this original music. That was the first thing with Huntington music… Deadbeats & Barkers.
That transformed into like 68 consecutive Sundays at Shamrocks. [Shamrocks owner Ian Thornton] gave us a shot, and I think [Deadbeats & Barkers] already had the Sunday gig when they asked me to play. We dove right in, and it was great. That period… I understand why they call it the good old days. I met Bud Carroll for the first time, Doug Woodward, The Demon Beat. Anybody and everybody would come on Sundays. Sometimes it would be so special. We’d play a set, take a break and then anybody who’d want to jam could jam. I think I quit my job at Amazon because of Sundays because I had to be at work on 8 on Monday morning.
On joining up with Tyler Childers:
It was kind of a joke at first. Jack Browning, a good buddy of ours who lives in L.A. now, thought, “Y’all should play together and be the Food Stamps.” Tyler Childers opened for us at Shoops, and he sang and it was beautiful, everybody was shocked. I’ll never forget after the show I said, “Man, you’re great, you’ve got great songs. You want to party?” His response was, “Man, I’m 18 and 45 minutes from home, I think I need to go.”
We kept crossing paths, and then the joke came back around, and it was one of our friend’s birthday parties where we finally did it. A little bit later, we were goofing around playing covers, and I took the initiative to put our name in the hat for a music festival in Cincinnati. We went to Bud’s and cut some demos. We got in, and it was the first time we played Tyler’s songs, and we’ve been doing it ever since.
Credit Josh Saul
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Bud Carroll, Rod Elkins, William Matheny, Adam Meisterhans and Ian Thornton backstage before their June 2016 Mountain Stage.
Nothing short of magical. I love that guy to death. It’s kind of hard to place when I first met William because once I did, it’s like he’s been in my life forever, it’s like he’s always been there. He probably knows better than I do. I filled in for Bud [since] Bud was playing drums. I can’t remember why he couldn’t play, but I learned the songs, and after those strings of dates it was like, “Would you like to be in this band? We can put Bud back on guitar.” [Billy’s] songs are great, he’s a great person, a true bandleader. I’m fortunate enough to play with the two best songwriters in West Virginia. It’s been nothing short of great, I don’t know how I did it. I’ve been really fortunate to hang in there with some of the best.
Music featured in this #WVmusic chat:
Rod Elkins- “DonDon”
Tyler Childers and The Foodstamps- “Feathered Indians”
Rod Elkins- “PanGan-Anini”
William Matheny & the Strange Constellations- “Living Half to Death”
Support for 30 Days of #WVmusic is provided by Kin Ship Goods, proud supporter of DIY music and the arts. Locally shipped worldwide at kinshipgoods.com.
