Sometimes we forget that the Catskills are part of Appalachia, with all its misty hollows and moonshine lore. Folk musician A.J. Roach will cure that little delusion -- his first two albums were all fiddles, banjos and lyrics about life in ghostly eastern mountain towns. According to his website, his latest album, Pleistocene, is a little more city-fied:
Here the rolling hills and dark hollows of Appalachia have been transformed into the towering skyline of Roach's adopted hometown of New York City. The fiddles and mandolins have been replaced by clarinets and fleugelhorns; the footstomps by a whispering snare drum. The result is a lushly orchestrated and beautifully arranged album completely funded by his dedicated and ever-growing fan base.
Roach will be in Phoenicia this weekend, making a packed schedule -- the Phoenicia Festival of the Voice is happening all week -- even more packed. Flying Cat Music, whose impresario, Tom Rinaldo, is a newly-minted Watershed Post correspondent and advertising sales rep, has orchestrated Roach's intimate appearance at the Empire State Railway Museum on Sunday evening. So when your nerves stop thrilling from hearing Metropolitan Opera singers perform Don Giovanni under the stars, head over to Roach for a little folk music nightcap.
An evening with A.J. Roach, Empire State Railway Museum, 70 Lower High Street, Phoenicia. August 7, 7:30 p.m. with the door opening at 7:00. Admission $12 at the door; $10 with RSVP to flyingcatmusic@gmail.com. 845-688-9453. www.myspace.com/flyingcatmusic.
