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Americana Folk Band Redleg Husky Returns to Boone on Saturday, Nov. 15, to Play Show at Galileos

By Jacquilyn Lavalle

Oct. 28, 2014. After a three-month cross-country tour, Redleg Husky will be back where it all started. On Nov. 15, the Americana folk band will play a show at Galileo’s in Boone. Joined by Andy Ferrell and Space Canoe, music will start at 10 p.m. There is a $5 suggested donation at the door.

Born out of Boone, Redleg Husky’s Misa Giroux and Tim McWilliams met at Appalachian State University in 2012.

imgres“We found out we were in the same program, high fived, and then played music until 3 a.m.,” Giroux said. “It really started as just hanging out, drinking a few beers and playing and talking about music we loved. We did some busing on King Street and then our favorite coffee shop, Local Lion, let us play on Saturday mornings.”

Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan heavily influenced McWilliams early on. This, paired with an admiration for the legendary Doc Watson, created a love of old country and blues that has manifested in many of Redleg Husky’s songs. More drawn to the singer-songwriter world, Giroux named her musical influences as Mary Chapin Carpenter, Patty Griffin and Gillian Welch.

“I really enjoy the fact that Tim and I have very different musical backgrounds, but still have certain artists and sounds we both love,” she said.

The band released their self-titled EP in January 2013, followed by a full-length studio album, Carolina, in March 2014. With a focus on Appalachian music paired with eclectic instruments, Redleg Husky has created musical possibilities that are never ending. The use of mandolin, guitar, banjo, percussion and musical saw highlight the band’s strong mountain roots. An ode to everyday life, the soulful blend of instruments is said to evoke “the sounds of a long drive, a well-worm record, or boots on a dusty floor.”

There is no denying the talent that overflows as soon as Redleg Husky hits the stage.

Despite playing in the town where it all began, the band has not limited itself to performing solely in the High Country. Eager to share their contemporary composition of foot stomping folk music, Redleg Husky embarked on a self-organized national tour, “Across the Fields,” in June. Ending this month, the tour spanned 16 states with 67 shows in 49 venues.

“Neither of us had ever been to any of these places before, so it was a great way to see more of the country while also sharing our music,” Giroux said.

Traveling around the nation has put Redleg Husky in the hot spotlight. With features in several publications, on television segments and radio shows, the band has continually impressed audiences. Recently, Redleg Husky was covered in Alternate Root Magazine’s “5 Flying Under the Radar,” WNCW’s “Local Color,” WMMT Mountain Community Radio, Homoground.com and WDVX’s “Blue Plate Special.”

Redleg Husky is enjoying every minute of their musical journey. When asked what the band’s greatest accomplishment was thus far, a humble response was given.

“I think we’re still both in shock and awe that we actually managed to pull off a completely self-planned, three-month cross country tour where we lived out of a Honda CR-V and ate a ridiculous amount of refried beans.”

For more information on Redleg Husky, click here.