IO Jukebox

Courtesy the Dixie Bee-Liners

Buddy Woodward and Brandi Hart

The Dixie Bee-Liners

• Lord, Lay Down My Ball & Chain
• Lost in the Silence

Get ready for the Dixie Bee-Liners. The group that some are calling the next hot bluegrass act is moving to Southwest Virginia.

Brandi Hart, a heartbreakingly good singer, and multi-instrumentalist Buddy Woodward have decided to move their act from the more frenetic New York City to the more bucolic Abingdon. It puts them closer to Barter Theatre, where Woodward is a cast member in “Man of Constant Sorrow: The Story of the Stanley Brothers.” It puts them closer to their new friends in the Crooked Road organization, and closer to Nashville.

The Bee-Liners play the Blue Ridge Music Center, Galax, on Wednesday. The Cana Ramblers open the 7 p.m. show. Get show details.

An e-mail interview with Woodward and Hart reveals a ration of goofiness but a reverence for the music and the audience.

Q: You call your musical style "Bible Belt noir." Explain who came up with that tag.

Buddy Woodward: A man appeared on a flaming pie & said unto us "from this day on you are 'Bible Belt Noir'," & we said, "yes, please."

Brandi Hart: Alan Young, who puts out the New York-based e-newsletter Trifectagram, came up with the tag. It came about in response to a conversation he and I had about my childhood in Kentucky and how it influenced my songwriting.

Q: Buddy, how did you hook up with the "Man of Constant Sorrow" gig?

Woodward: A couple years ago a friend sent Brandi & I a notice from Craig's List about NY auditions for a touring company of the Barter Theatre's "Keep On The Sunny Side: The Story of The Carter Family." We're not really actors (though I do voice-over work for cartoons on the side), but we figured you never know who you might meet or where it might lead, etc. Neither of us were cast, but the Barter folks kept my info on file, & when MOCS came up last year they called & offered me the gig. Which, I might add, is probably the only independently verifiable instance in the annals of recorded human history where "we'll keep your application on file" actually meant something! It's been a wonderful experience, & opened up many doors for the Dixie Bee Liners as well. And the good people of the mountain south have welcomed us with open arms.

Q: What drew you guys to move to Abingdon? Was "Constant Sorrow" a factor? Or were there other reasons? Obviously, it's closer to Brandi's old Kentucky home.

Woodward: The Barter Theatre is based out of Abingdon, as is The Crooked Road organization, who are big supporters of ours. I will be doing more work with the Barter in the future (including an October tour with MOCS which will take us to the Carolinas, Virginia, West Virginia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky & other points south). It's also close to important festivals, and its within striking distance of Nashville... not to mention a TON of great pickers, including some really hot ones coming out of ETSU's bluegrass program.

Hart: We'd been wanting to leave New York for a long time, both for career purposes and just plain mental health. When we played Ralph Stanley's festival in May, we saw about 15 or 20 rainbows in the mountains -- so many that we lost count. That was the last sign we needed.

Q: Is the entire band making the move? And is the move strictly band related, or do you find that this is a better region in which to play your style of music?

Woodward: Just Brandi & I are making the move. We love our band & hope that we can keep as many of them on as possible when our tour schedule picks up and our appearance fees allow. Meanwhile, we will be looking for local musicians to play with us.

Hart: It was clear that we needed to relocate if we're going to take The Dixie Bee-Liners to the next level. And yes, it's a MUCH better region to play roots music, probably one of the best places in the country for what we're doing.

Q: The band is recording its first full-length album, but already has gained a good deal of media exposure -- BBC, NPR, the Food Network, Sirius. Root Music Report calls the Bee-liners "the next big thing in bluegrass music." You've already released a very successful EP. Not much pressure to produce this time out, eh?

Woodward: None at all! The hard part for us is always what to leave OUT -- we really have an embarrassment of riches & could easily put out three CDs a year & still not release everything we have. We have dozens of songs, including three complete "concept album" projects ready to go. Put us together with the right label, a good booking agent and a decent publicity budget, and this thing will punch a hole in the sky like a Saturn 5, I guarantee it.

Hart: Yeah, I wrote a LOT of songs on the subway.

Q: New York has a built-in audience for just about any kind of music. How is the audience response in the south different than what you get in your soon-to-be-former home base? And how does that whole "Bible Belt Noir" tag play in different regions?

Woodward: The "built-in audience" thing is a myth. NYC has SO many entertainment options & people's tastes are SO diverse that its neigh impossible to really build up a big following in any genre. There are few clubs that will support bluegrass, let alone pay decent. Once you get out of the NY Metro area, live music is an "event" for people, something they really look forward to & attend as a family.

Hart: As for "Bible Belt Noir," it's not meant to be sacrilegious. Once people hear us, they realize immediately that we come from a long tradition of lonesome-sounding mountain music and spooky old hymns... no matter how "uptown" we get. (And we live on 177th Street -- that's waaaaay uptown.)

Q: No offense to anyone else in the band, but why isn't Brandi already a superstar?

Woodward: Because I've been holding her back. I can make her & I can break her, bwaa-ha-ha-haaaaaa!!!

Hart: Honestly, Buddy taught me everything I know. If he hadn't come along, I'd still be performing for the cat. The band is what makes me sound great. I couldn't think of going it alone in this business.

Q: Aside from Galax, you have a Barter gig and a show at the Down Home, in Johnson City. Any plans to play the Blacksburg or Roanoke areas any time soon?

Hart: We'd love to play Blacksburg or Roanoke! Just tell 'em to give us a call!