Daniel Hart of Darks Rooms treated his audience to a guitar-vox-violin triple-threat.

By Chris Nafekh, Staff Writer

Published in print Sept. 10, 2014

North Carolina is renowned for musical diversity.  In the mountains, bluegrass and country are celebrated and played authentically, maintaining the roots of Carolina culture.  Around the Triangle, the independent music scene grows everyday with new bands and experimental music. Jazz thrives in both the Triangle and Greensboro, especially at UNCG. The Miles Davis Jazz program is an epicenter for young musicians who wish to harness their talents for performance and education. 

Outside the state, North Carolina is revered for its music culture.  The synthesis of jazz, folk and alternative music is unlike any other state.  Artists from all over the nation commented on how North Carolina was different, unique.  But why?  And why is Hopscotch important for our culture?

It has been said that the festival is a gateway for local artists.  Several regional bands played throughout the weekend.  Lonnie Walker’s band is straight out of Raleigh, and this year, they opened on the main stage for St. Vincent.  This could be a massive step forward for the band, opening for an extremely popular act in the middle of the state’s most prominent music festival.

Candice Jones is head of public relations for the fest.  She spends months reaching out to T.V., radio stations and other media outlets for coverage and knows the ropes pretty well.

“About thirty percent of the band are local,” she said in an interview.  “Hopscotch is great because of the band collaborations and the club-crawl style.” 

Not only do band receive more exposure, but they also get the chance to work with seasoned artists who know the trade well. “Thurston Moore and Steve Shelly are around here somewhere,” Jones added.  The former members of Sonic Youth stay the entire festival to play with other bands and collaborate. 

“There’s a lot of cross-pollination around the Triangle,” commented Daniel Hart, frontman of Texas-based electronic-acoustic getup Dark Rooms.  The band was on tour, and had opened for Radiohead earlier in their career.  “Watching Radiohead live was like school, going to class every night… I took a lot away from it.”  Artists learn from each other, and the culture of mixed creativity attracts new artists.  “[Earlier in my career] I specifically moved here for the music scene,” Hart said.

Spoon performing at the City Plaza.

“[Raleigh cultivates] a new kind of enthusiasm than in Charlotte or Charleston or Asheville,” said Parry Fowler, guitarist/harmonica-player of Sinners & Saints. “Some of my favorite bands are from here.” Blaming the unique enthusiasm on North Carolina’s “mountain blood”, his counterpart Mark Baran noted that one drawback is that in the city, people don’t dance as much.

Even if people don’t dance as much as in other cities, there’s no denying the uniqueness of the capital city.

“Raleigh is an up-and-coming city for young professionals,” commented Jacob Joyner, freelance photographer.  “Hopscotch shows this.”  Joyner, a student of film at UNC Wilmington, raised his eyebrow at every question.  “I like the club crawl style,” he stated. “It promotes local businesses.”

By advertising local businesses and selling local goods, the vendors at Hopscotch fest are not only supporting the festival, but also spreading North Carolina culture outwards to anybody coming from across states. 

Local businesses thrive on festivals like this, and Carolina culture is purified, enriched and spread throughout.  The music is authentic, honest and powerful, and the more that North Carolina citizens support these efforts, the better the result will be.  As Hopscotch grows, people like Joyner and Jones will promote the festival, and in turn, promote local artists like Lonnie Walker, and support unique Carolina culture.