Rising Appalachia Snow Music Tour
Wolfmaan was first introduced to the unique sound of Rising Appalachia through some of the various posts on Facebook in the earthy, hippie, community.
From the American South comes two amazing female artists, who bring hope for the future along with the promise of keeping the past alive.
Rising Appalachia is led by sisters Leah and Chloe Smith. Together they brandish the power of pure harmony, Old Time music, hip hop, soul and world-infused folk to spread a message of the need for urgent change – to help the environment, to change the distribution of wealth, and to simply make the world better.
“we are building community and tackling social injustice through melody – making the stage reach out with musical arms to gather a great global family”
Rocking the Casbah
Being part of a musical family, the band started a little over a decade ago as part of a “to-do list”. Recoding their first album lay at the bottom of an actual written list, along with other mundane tasks such as laundry, groceries, and “record album”.
The sisters were raised listening to Appalachian lullabies at night and soul music for breakfast, drawing inspiration from both their local and international community. They said when they were young, they were “sick of hearing their mothers play the fiddle”. Over time they developed their own natural and singular interpretation of striking music. Their tours have taken them across Europe to the Caribbean, Central America, the Indian subcontinent, and across the US.
They maintain autonomy by self-managing, recording, producing and creating, and directing their own work.
The lights dim, and two incredibly tall (Chloe is over 180cm tall!) , beautiful, earthy women take the stage. They pick up their instruments, and a unique sound like no other will take over the stage.
While on stage, Leah talks about using their unique sound as a tool for activism. They have a beautiful and delicate way of presenting their activism in a way that is not the least imposing. Many of their songs speak of the troubles of the United States. These include issues with political governance and the problems with the prison system.
Many of their songs are re-makes of what they say are traditional songs of the south which have been changed to meet the struggles of modern life.
It is very difficult to describe the unique and captivating sound of Rising Appalachia. Their incredible harmonies, unusual instruments such as the Irish Bodhran make them a cross of folk, bluegrass, and a little bit of country thrown in.
Wolfmaan was fortunate enough to see the band live in April of 2016 while they rocked the Casbah in Hamilton, Ontario. Unfortunately the band was unavailable for an interview.
Listen to their poetic vocals, soul singing, spoken word rallies, banjos, fiddles, organic bass, and groove rhythms. It’s the sound of building community – using sound as a tool to spark awareness, action, and change.
Their Facebook page can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/RisingAppalachiaMusic
Their YouTube channel can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/user/RisingAppalachiaRA
If you love the amazing sounds of Rising Appalachia, please leave your comments below!