AVLFest 2024: Day 3 (Part Two)

Emily Easterly (Photo by Jonny Leather)

6:30pm @ Eulogy — Emily Easterly

I didn't know what to expect when she took the stage. The little bit that I knew about the local singer-songwriter was that her set was slotted between The Silver Doors and Wagging (whom she's also a member of) at Eulogy, where I already found myself. Eulogy may be the venue with the most consistently good lineup of AVLFest, which is of no surprise considering that's the club's reputation the rest of the year as well. 

Easterly and her band quickly won me over with a hazy alternative rock that recalled '90s favorites such as Liz Phair and Kristin Hersh. For all the venue hopping that happens during a festival like this, sometimes it's best to just stay put and be pleasantly surprised. —Jonny Leather

Langhorne Slim (Photo by Heather Taylor)

7pm @ French Broad River Brewing — Langhorne Slim

Langhorne Slim eschewed the stage at the French Broad River Brewery on Saturday evening and instead set up in front of the stage, at parking lot level, encouraging the crowd to move closer to create a more intimate environment. It certainly worked, as members of the audience sang along to his emotional and gorgeous songs, moving one attendee to tears. He ended the performance by guiding the audience in a rendition of the heartbreakingly beautiful “You Are My Sunshine” together. Also, Langhorne Slim was the only performer I heard all weekend remark on the weirdly obtrusive video and audio boom mic. The thing hovered over him and the crowd in close proximity and he yelled, “What is that?!?! What a threat!,” rightfully forcing the operator to move it away. —Scott Bunn

Langhorne Slim took the “stage” solo, open-hearted, and unafraid to share the more vulnerable chapters of his life, bringing a sense of reality while lifting us up with his music. Taking suggestions from the audience in the second half of his show, requested songs like "Be Set Free" had everyone swaying along, creating a genuine connection that made you feel truly in sync with the artist. —Heather Taylor

Blitzen Trapper (Photo by Micah Rogers)

Blitzen Trapper (Photo by Jonny Leather)

8pm @ The Outpost — Blitzen Trapper

At this point in the band's career, it's safe to say that the quartet from Portland, Ore., is alternative country royalty, so it was no surprise when Blitzen Trapper's name appeared towards the top of the artist announcement for AVLFest. Performing a mix of beloved favorites — and less familiar jams from the group's latest album, 100's of 1000's, Millions of Billions — as the sun began to set over the riverside outdoor space, it was easy to vibe out amongst the hundreds of fans in attendance. I'm hardly a diehard Blitzen Trapper fan, but there may not have been a performance more perfectly representative of the AVLFest vision all weekend. —JL

Blitzen Trapper (Photo by Justin Bowman)

Minutes after my partner commented, “I didn’t think they would be so electric-heavy,” frontman Eric Earley swapped in his acoustic guitar for greatest hit “Black River Killer” and other sing-a-long-friendly numbers. Though far too upbeat and jammy to be labeled “chill,” this set’s vibe in a cool, increasingly darkening setting was nevertheless just the right kind of mellow — at least until the dog fights began. (Seriously, who brings a dog to a loud concert with tons of people?) — Edwin Arnaudin

9:15pm @ Salvage Station — Papadosio

Clearly, these guys are not your Uncle John’s jam band. Digitized psychedelic projections perfectly matched their galactic music and movements of the artists — flailing electronica infused through jazz, blues, funk, and so much more. —Kevin Evans

Papadosio for the win! While I may go in more for grungy garage bands than jammy jam bands, I did recognize as soon as the schedule was released that the combination of ingredients of Papadosio outside at Salvage Station on Saturday, right as day turned to night, made it a must see show at this year’s fest. I have seen many jam band shows in that space, including that band and their fungi-friendly alter ego, Microdosio, and they were special experiences. The setting, in a clearing by the river, just beyond the bluster of downtown Asheville, matched with the infectious collective energies for these types of concerts have made me understand the avid allegiance to this genre.

There will not be many more shows that bring these elements together with Savage Station required to relocate at year’s end. So if this is one of the last times I feel all the feels in this field of like-minded music fans, it was worthy of the super-awesome shows scrapbook. The sustaining songs, the amazing instrumentation, the trippy projections on the back screen, the waves of pulsing response from the captivated crowd — Jam, Gina! That was my most visceral AVLFest experience to date. And then when they called out Asheville royalty Stephanie Morgan of Pink Mercury to vocally improvise with them on one of the last songs, I was convinced that I had found salvation at Salvage Station and gone to heaven. —Tom Chalmers

Bryan Colston (Photo by Jonny Leather)

9:30pm @ Eulogy — Bryan Colston

Despite interviewing him about his excellent 2021 album, Imposter Syndrome, I’d somehow never seen Colston perform live and, knowing that I could only stay for a fraction of C. Shreve the Professor’s hip-hop showcase, was elated that the MC was first on the bill. Along with his hype man Ryno, who also spit a solid verse of his own, and Free the Optimist’s DJ Jet scratching like it’s his job (it is), Colston ripped passionate bar after passionate bar to an enthusiastic crowd — some of whom had pre-gamed a little too hard and inevitably wound up sprawled on the floor. It was disrespectful behavior for a rapper who most definitely deserves more respect. —EA

Sarah Shook & The Disarmers (Photo by Jonny Leather)

Sarah Shook & The Disarmers (Photo by Bryce LaFoon)

9:30pm @ The Orange Peel — Sarah Shook & The Disarmers

While I was thankful to catch Colson’s lyrical prowess and see DJ Jet in action, up the hill at The Peel I quickly wished I’d exited Eulogy a song or three earlier — as it would have meant another song or three with one of North Carolina’s (and, hell, the entire South’s) best rock bands. Led by the magnetic singer/songwriter (who now goes by River), this lineup continues to evolve and reach new sonic heights, and their rousing finale of “Sidelong” might have been the most goosebump-inducing close to any AVLFest set. —EA

9:45pm @ The Outpost — Beachwood Sparks

Are we as reviewers legally obligated to describe the band Beachwood Sparks as “cosmic country”? Despite releasing only a handful of albums in the past 20 years, they demonstrated on Saturday night at The Outpost that it might be better to say that they are “a damn good country rock outfit.” Mostly performing songs from their just-released Across the River of Stars while still sharing classics such as “Desert Skies,” they showed off beautiful vocal harmonies and tight playing throughout their late-night set. —SB

Washed Out (Photo by Jonny Leather)

Washed Out (Photo by Justin Bowman)

11pm @ The Orange Peel — Washed Out

There may still be another day to go, but I'll just go ahead and crown Washed Out's set as the best of AVLFest — and not just because Earnest Weatherly Greene Jr. and I were born on the exact same day in 1982.

For a decent chunk of the week, I was hating on Notes from a Quiet Life to friends via a private text thread, likening the latest album by the Atlanta-based electronic artist to watching paint dry. Despite my knee-jerk critique of the record, I found myself at The Orange Peel for the late-night set, lured in on the strength of his earlier work. As he and his partially-concealed backing band began to perform, I began to eat my words, because the new material sounded far more radiant propelled through the powerful soundsystem.

Complemented by interesting visual projections, Washed Out's set was exactly what AVLFest needed. In a festival chock full of acts channeling the rustic sounds that are traditionally associated with Appalachia, the colorful synth-heavy jams were a reminder that we're currently in the 21st century. The absolutely packed house showed that there's a strong local demand for more electronic music during AVLFest and the rest of the year. Sure, this is a banjo and fiddle town, but Asheville is also still home to Moog. —JL

Washed Out (Photo by Bryce LaFoon)

Washed Out (Photo by Arlo Abrams)

Mere hours are insufficient to process the extent to which Washed Out’s set brought me joy. And yet I knew very early on that I was being moved in ways that I’d rarely — if ever — experienced in a live setting.

Unsure what kind of set-up Greene would employ, his stage-center orientation at a command board where he conjured whatever magic it is he conjures was augmented by diverse projections upon a backing four-panel partition — behind which hid a drummer on one side and a guitarist/synth player on the other. Good luck deciphering a word he sung beyond a few personal pronouns, but Greene’s hypnotic melodies and the ensemble’s approximately 27 layers of instrumentation put the crowd into a trance that wasn’t soon broken — their digital delights cascading over us like the ultimate sound bath..

I guess I’m a chillwave superfan now. —EA