Ahhh, another beautiful day in the mountains of North Carolina. The birds are chirping, the trees are budding, and the gentle Spring breeze soothes the soul. Back in December, we began working on our second studio album and we're currently putting the final touches on it. We can't wait to share our hard work with you all and we are excited to announce some big shows on the horizon!

First off, we'll be heading down to Charleston, SC to perform at the Charleston Bluegrass Festival! The festival takes place on April 7th and 8th and features awesome acts such as Band of Ruhks, Barefoot Movement, Grass is Dead, and many more! If you'd like more info, click here! It's gonna be a blast down in the low country!!!

After that, we will be heading to one of our favorite venues in one of our favorite cities for a ragin' Saturday night. That's right folks, we're talking about the Pour House in Raleigh, North Carolina! The date is Saturday, April 15th and we'll be joined by our good buddy James Olin Oden for what promises to be an unforgettable night. You can buy tickets here or grab them at the door. $7 in advance and $10 day of show. Can't wait to make our way back to the city that has taken us in and treated us so well, we love you Raleigh!

And finally, we are excited to announce our big CD release celebration party at Isis Music Hall right here in our home town of West Asheville, NC!! Not only will we be celebrating the completion of our album, but it happens to be Cinco de Mayo as well! We are also thrilled to announce that we will be joined by our good friends Horseshoes and Hand Grenades from Wisconsin. These guys are one heck of a band and they play some incredible music. They are overflowing with energy and positivity and we are so honored to have them join us for this exciting evening of music!

We will also be doing an album wrap party and release party in Johnson City where we've been recording our album. It will take place on May 6th at the Down Home. We'll be presenting our entire album and just having a good old time gettin' down at the Down Home!

For those of you who are unfamiliar with our new album, here's a little background on what we've been up to:

Fireside Collective has been hard at work since December at the recording studio at East Tennessee State University. We've got 12 brand new, original tracks and a bunch of awesome guests artists featured on the CD. We also had the honor of working with the amazing Daniel Boner! Dan is the director of the Bluegrass, Country, and Old-Time music department at ETSU. He joined us to produce our vocals and let me tell you, the man is a magician! We were also joined by Jesse Langlais who produced our first 2 days of instrument tracking for the album. Jesse is an incredible banjo player and member of Asheville bluegrass band Town Mountain. He's also an all around great guy and we're thankful for his contributions. Our sound engineer Ben Bateson is still hard at work helping us mix the album. Ben is a literal wizard in the control booth and he has really elevated this project to another level. ​

We also feature some incredible musicians on the album. We were joined by fiddle players Jack Devereux and Cody Bauer as well as banjo players Brady Wallen, George Wagman, Calder Baker, and Ben Bateson. The amazing Cara Mastrianni also joined us as a vocalist on a number of songs. She's been travelling around with the band and helping us in so many ways and we are super grateful to have her on the album, as well as all those who contributed to this project!

In addition to these exciting shows we mentioned, we have a lot more great shows coming up. Head on over to our tour page or click here to learn more!

Once again folks, we want to thank you for being apart of this journey with us. All the roads we've crossed and the notes we've played would be nothing without you. The amount of love and support that we've received has comforted us and motivated us in so many ways and we look forward to sharing this new CD with you all!

As these wayward winds keep winding through the mountains, we await winter's chill to gently drift away. We rejoice at the occasional warm winter day as it reminds us of the vibrant days of summer. We remember that even though it may seem that the long dark nights are here to stay, they too shall pass. All the while, we remember the importance of rest and rejuvenation during these cold days and winter nights. 

Here at the Fireside homestead in Asheville, North Carolina, we have been hard at work preparing for another busy year. We've got exciting shows, fun festivals, and a whole lot of driving on the horizon. Most importantly, we are in the final phases of recording our SECOND STUDIO ALBUM!!! We're 95% of the way through the recording process and looking forward to releasing our album in the coming months. There's some fast bluegrass numbers, funk and folk hybrids, love songs, and heartbreak tunes. Songs of hope and songs of change, songs of joy and songs of pain. There's some rippin' Dobro, lightning fast guitar solos, tasty mandolin licks, and badass bass breaks! All of this and more, so stay tuned for more info on this as we put the finishing touches on what promises to be our most exciting work yet!

As we await the completion of our album, we are hitting the road once again and sharing the stage with some exciting bands! Starting next week, we embark on our annual winter run. This time, we will travel through Knoxville, Nashville, St. Louis, Columbia MO, Kansas City, and final destination, Wichita KS. We always have a blast in Kansas City and we can't wait to return Wichita. We had such a blast last year in Wichita and we look forward to another awesome night in Kansas!

After that, we head back east in support of an amazing progressive bluegrass band out of San Francisco. Our friends from the band Front Country have invited us to join them at the Isis Restaurant and Music Hall in our hometown of Asheville. We had a chance to play with Front Country at a BBQ and bluegrass festival in Raleigh, NC last year and let me tell you, they absolutely blew us away!! We can't wait to join them once again for what promises to be an exciting night of bluegrass music and contemporary folk!!

In addition to these shows, here's a look at our full winter tour beginning next week:

​Feb. 23rd - Barley's Taproom and Pizzeria in Knoxville, TN @ 10pm
Feb. 24th - WDVX Blue Plate Special in Knoxville, TN @ Noon (live radio show)
Feb. 24th - Scruffy City Hall in Knoxville, TN @ 10pm
​Feb. 25th - Little Harpeth Brewing in Nashville, TN @ 6pm
Mar. 1st - Evangeline's Bistro in St. Louis, MO @ 7pm
Mar. 2nd - Broadway Brewery in Columbia, MO @ 8:30pm
Mar. 3rd - Westport Saloon in Kansas City, MO @ 10pm
Mar. 4th - Central Standard Brewing in Wichita, KS @ 6:30pm
Mar. 8th - Isis Restaurant and Music Hall in Asheville, NC @ 8pm w/Front Country
Mar. 10th - Brewmasters in Wilson, NC @ 7pm
Mar. 11th - St. Patty's Day Street Fest in Raleigh, NC @ Noon
Mar. 11th - Stag's Head in Raleigh, NC @ 9pm

Click here for full tour schedule.

Cabin fever is starting to kick in and we are ready to get back on the road! We had so much fun in 2016 meeting new friends, reconnecting with old ones, and journeying all across this beautiful country. We look forward to another year of adventures and we can't wait to see what stories the road will reveal to us. We'll leave you with some lines from the first track on our new album:

"Every now and then, I hear that blowin' wind and I think of all the roads I've crossed. When every place you roam, feels just like home, tell me how can you get lost?!" 

We are grateful for all the love and support we've been shown thus far and look forward to the memories we have yet to create with you all.

Peace and love,
Fireside Collective