Watch the video from Mountain Heart we shot during their special Tuesday night showcase at IBMA. It offers a glimpse of the variety of music they deliver, from traditional bluegrass to a rockin’, hybrid sound. The presentation was powerful, and whether you agree with taking bluegrass in this direction, the impact of the performance was impressive – and unforgettable.

Watch the video here.

I had a nice conversation this afternoon with fiddlemeister Jim VanCleve, during which he shared word about his and Josh Shilling’s unexpected trip to St. Croix to play music. Apparently Jim has a business acquaintance who is involved in bringing bluegrass artists down to the islands, and when a last-minute cancellation put him in a bind, he called Jim to see if he might be able to throw something together quickly and fill in.

Jim said that they took a ton of photos, and that Josh is putting together a little travelogue for us to publish here on The Bluegrass Blog. Look for that to appear soon, along with their swimwear photos.

Josh and Jim are also playing the Grand Ole Opry tonight with Mountain Heart. They are scheduled in the 9:00-9:30 segment (EDT), which you can catch over the air on 650 AM from Nashville, via online streaming at wsmonline.com, and on XM channel 11 (XM Nashville).

Josh Shilling, lead vocalist with Mountain Heart, sent along these photos of the band at the CMA Music Festival last week.

        

        

    

We’ve written a good bit this past few months about Josh Shilling, the newest member of Mountain Heart who had the unenviable job of taking the spot held by founding member, Steve Gulley, on guitar and vocals. Josh and the rest of the band will release their newest CD, Road That Never Ends – The Live Album, on Tuesday, October 23 on Rural Rhythm Records.

Our local Roanoke, VA newspaper, The Roanoke Times, has published a feature on Josh, written by staffer Tad Dickens, which follows the “local boy makes good” format. Josh grew up not far from Roanoke in Martinsville, VA, and got his professional music career started playing with Roanoke-area bands.

For 24-year-old Shilling, the road that never ends started around Roanoke.

Shilling was already a veteran of the region’s music, nightspot and recording scene by the time he graduated from Bassett High School. Every male in his family plays guitar. His maternal grandfather, Leon Woodward, and uncle, Kim Woodward, were well-known nightclub pickers.

Read the full article on The Roanoke Times web site.

Don’t forget that tomorrow (10/22) between noon and 10:00 p.m. (ET), any registered user of The Bluegrass Blog can download a free track from Road That Never Ends. Be sure to log in during that time and get a free first look at Josh Shilling and Mountain Heart live.