Stillhouse had a fantastic time rehearsing for the Blue Highways Festival in Amsterdam, April 18-20, 2006. The band also bicycled through town, ate great food, and enjoyed some exquisite draft beer after practice...okay...the beer flowed before and during rehearsal as well.
The spirit of enjoyment and Dutch hospitality was evident both on-stage and in the audience when Stillhouse blasted an energetic, hour-long set on the small stage of Utrecht's Muziekcentrum Vredenburg on April 22. In addition to several tracks from "Through The Winter", the band played three new songs: Johnny's great new rocker "24-Carat Eyes"; and two pretty new additions from the Dave Wilson stable, "Changing Hands Over Time" and "Alone In New York".
Zeke and Jay went right back on the same stage after the Utrecht Stillhouse show to participate in a stellar Tift Merritt performance. Tift's second Blue Highways appearance was the first of five shows with her band, so Zeke and Jay continued on with her to play great shows in London, Stockholm, Oslo, and Bergen (April 22-29).
Dave, Greg, and Johnny flew back to North Carolina; where all three played at MerleFest in North Wilkesboro. Chatham County Line gave a knockout performance and received a standing ovation during their inaugural appearance at the festival. Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion wowed the MerleFest faithful on a couple of occasions, and they were even joined on stage by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings.
Dave and Greg then got right back on a plane bound for Europe. Chatham County Line is currently touring there in anticipation of the May release of their great new Yep Roc effort, "Speed of the Whipoorwill". Positive news has followed the tour so far, and Jonas Fjeld joined the band on several of their Norwegian dates.
Zeke and Jay played with Sarah Lee and Johnny on May 5 at the first of a series of Friday night events at Shakori Hills. Afterward Sarah Lee and Johnny headed north for a spate of acoustic shows. Zeke also left shortly thereafter for a northeast run with Hotel Lights.
In sum, Stillhouse once again had lots of fun during the North Carolina and Netherlands performances. Please check out the web site periodically to find out about upcoming Stillhouse shows.
