River Whyless, Live In Concert: Newport Folk 2016

Three of the four members of the Asheville band River Whyless met while attending Appalachian State University in nearby Boone, N.C., and their long-lived friendship shows in their band's music. The folk-pop band builds mountains out of sensitive harmony lines and adorns its open-road sound with Halli Anderson's yearning fiddle.

River Whyless' Newport Folk set, full of moments of reflection and joy alike, was ideal for Sunday morning. The band's members were clearly thrilled to be playing at the festival, and their humility was wholly endearing. "I planned to talk a lot and woo everybody, but I'm kind of emotional for some reason," Anderson admitted after the quietly empathetic "Life Crisis," from last year's self-titled EP. Another highlight was the band's soaring cover of the Woody Guthrie-Wilco song "Airline To Heaven," which featured surprise guest vocalist Kam Franklin of Houston soul band The Suffers.

Set List

• "The Hunt"
• "Bath Salts"
• "Life Crisis"
• "Widows Walk"
• "Baby Brother"
• "All Day All Night"
• "Pigeon Feathers"
• "Airline To Heaven" (Billy Bragg & Wilco cover)

Credits

Audio: Joshua Rogosin, Suraya Mohamed, Loretta Rae; Photography: Adam Kissick

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