Shakori Hills announces initial lineup for Spring 2014

Indigo Girls will be performing at Spring Shakori
alongside The Del McCoury Band, Ben Sollee,
Dirty Dozen Brass Band and more

It's never to early to get amped for Shakori, the semi-annual music and arts festival that takes place in Pittsboro, NC. At this point it almost goes without saying that I'm beyond excited for these events, and with Shakori's recent land purchase there's a whole lot to be excited about now. Organizers plan on making improvements to the festival grounds and it seems as if the number of events taking place on this beloved farm are going to start increasing as well. With the hefty land acquisition behind us now, one can only imagine how thankful and excited all of the attendees for this spring's festival are going to be. Those that attend Shakori can attest to how regularly every hoped and wished for this very purchase to go through, solidifying Shakori's permanence around the community. And so far it looks like the festival is going to be giving us a lot to celebrate, as they just announced a very brief but impressive initial lineup.

Rounded out by two highly revered acts of widely different stylings, Spring Shakori brings The Del McCoury Band and Indigo Girls to the farm and helps prove the leaps and bounds that traditional folk and bluegrass music has made. Del McCoury is one of bluegrass' gatekeepers, a living legend in the genre that will be making his long awaited return to the farm (his band last performed in Fall 2007). While McCoury's band is steeped with traditionalism, Indigo Girls are a Grammy award-winning contemporary folk act that brilliantly melds a variety of rustic stylings with rich storytelling to create a moving product of folk-rock excellence. While big-name acts like McCoury and Indigo Girls always brings a slew of new-comers to the festival, the best parts of Shakori always lie within the undercard. Widely heralded acts like the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and the virtuosic cellist Ben Sollee will be making their Shakori Hills debut (Sollee is one I've been hoping for since I first started attending Shakori nearly four years ago) alongside Grassroots favorites like JP Harris & the Tough Choices, Driftwood and Donna The Buffalo.

Other standouts include The Last Bison, Baloji & L’Orchestra de la Katuba and local standouts Morning Brigade. Spring Shakori will be taking place from April 17-20 in Pittsboro, NC. Tickets are currently on-sale at ShakoriHillsGrassroots.org at the early-bird rate (until Feb. 23) of $90 for a 4-day weekend pass. Daily passes will become available during the regular pre-sale period of Feb. 24 - April 14. Keep an eye out for more lineup announcements, we'll keep you posted as soon as we get news!