Red Barn Radio

Joe Troop is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter hailing from the North Carolina Piedmont. He is one half of the acclaimed panamerican folk duo Larry & Joe, and founder of GRAMMY-nominated stringband Che Apalache. His music is deeply inspired by a decade living in Buenos Aires and traveling throughout Latin America and the world.

When the pandemic landed him back in North Carolina in 2020, Joe began working with stalwart organizers in order to more effectively meld his music and progressive social agenda. This culminated in his 2021 album “Borrowed Time,” featuring an epic cast of collaborators including Béla Fleck, Abigail Washburn, Tim O’Brien and Charlie Hunter.

In December of 2021 the stars aligned, and Joe met his musical soul brother, Raleigh-based Venezuelan folk music legend and asylum-seeker Larry Bellorín. Soon thereafter he decided to put down roots in Durham to pursue the duo full time.

When not on the road with Lare-bear, Joe leads various ensembles in NC, which play his original music.

Eric Bolander has been active on the music scene for many years. He writes thoughtfully, his songs have staying power, and he brings to the stage the same joy he brings to his students at the high school where he teaches art.

Eric grew up in the Ohio Valley in the small Eastern KY town of Garrison. His dad passed on a humble and compassionate work ethic which became a driving force for Eric to achieve his life goals in subsequent years. Eric now lives here in Lexington, KY, and is a pillar in the city's art community. Eric always brings a great band to Red Barn Radio, and this week is no exception.

With deep bluegrass roots and a hard-edged traditional country sound, Will Jones is carving out a space where Appalachian soul meets outlaw grit.Will didn’t so much learn three chords as inherit them. Raised deep in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, his music carries the raw heartbeat of Appalachian bluegrass and the fierce edge of traditional country. “I knew three chords and the truth before I even knew my ABCs,” he says, summing up his earliest years in music, when he was already on stage with a guitar in hand, immersed in the mountain spirit that shaped generations before him.Born into the family band, The Cana Ramblers, Will learned early what it meant to perform. By age six, he was singing lead, strumming guitar, and commanding the crowd as the band’s natural MC. “I was always the one talking to the crowd,” he recalls. “Knowing how to entertain and hold a stage — that’s what I’m still doing now. Nothing’s changed.”Nothing’s changed, but he’s certainly refined. For Will, Appalachian bluegrass is the lifeblood that shapes both his music and his story. Now, Will’s music feels equal parts front-porch picker and highway poet, which comes through clearly in his most recent songs, “Lonesome Dove,” “My Country’s Showing” and “Devil’s Den.” While his artistry continues to expand, he explains, “the heart of my sound remains rooted in my bluegrass beginnings.” As Will puts it, “being surrounded by bluegrass mountain music as I grew up — that’s what made me, that’s what raised me.” When his sisters left the band to pursue other paths, Will faced a crossroads. “I knew I was meant to play music,” he says. “I wanted to take it to a bigger stage, and my family supported and encouraged that dream.” Driven by that hunger, at 17 he stepped out on his own, carrying the Appalachian soul with him and choosing the road less traveled. Now based in Nashville,

The 65 North Pickers are a high-energy bluegrass quartet that fuses the drive of traditional bluegrass with the exploratory spirit of jam band im-provisation. Their high-energy performances feature incredible original compositions that merge bluegrass with the nostalgic vibes of classic festival music, where the essence of the grateful dead meets the psy-chedelic flair of Jimi Hendrix. with listeners dancing out of their chairs and captivated by the music. Next week will be an unforgettable night of music and conversation with the 65 North Pickers!

Musician Michael G. Ronstadt has traversed a wide range of musical styles from singer-songwriter, folk, jazz, classical, Americana to new age. Ronstadt displays genre-blending explorations on cello and guitar in complement to thought-provoking lyrics, as well as instrumental work. In addition to his solo and group recordings with Ronstadt Brothers, Trotta & Ronstadt, Serenity Fisher & The Cardboard Hearts, Aaron Na-thans & Michael G. Ronstadt, he is a much sought-after studio musician, who has appeared on more than 200 albums in the last 20 years. Michael has recorded in studios across the United States in Philadelphia, Tucson, Phoenix, Nashville, New York City, New Jersey, Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Germany & North Wales (UK).

His versatile work has been tapped for studio and concert work by such artists as David Bromberg, Linda Ronstadt, Murial Anderson and Craig Bickhardt (SKB). He has opened up for artists like Ruthie Foster, Jor-ma Kaukonen (Hot Tuna, Jefferson Airplane), Steve Katz (Blood, Sweat & Tears), Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Neil Young, Death Cab For Cutie, Smashing Pumpkins and Josh Groban. He has toured and performed with the late, great Rick Rosas (Crazy Horse) and Dave Krusen (Pearl Jam). His performances have been heard at the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering (Elko, NV), Philadelphia Folk Festival, San Diego Sail Festival, Musical Instrument Museum (MIM), Common Ground On The Hill Music Festival, and Tucson Folk Festival to name a few.

Serenity Fisher has a piano style that is theatrical and passionate. Her music has been compared to Regina Spektor, Tori Amos and Fiona Apple.

Episode 228

First Air 01-04-26

Bryce Mullins

Cask Strength

A OK

Breakthrough

Sidewalkin'

Always Right by Your Side

Alice's Saturday Night Train

Raising Kane

E.T

Bryce Mullins is a seasoned fingerstyle guitarist and songwriter hailing from Batesville, Indiana, with a rich and diverse musical background. Initially introduced to the guitar by his father, Bryce's passion quickly grew, drawing him into a world where classic rock intertwined with classical music, blues, and bluegrass. A pivotal moment in his early development came when he encountered the works of Andrés Segovia, leading him to pursue classical guitar with fervor.

Bryce's academic journey took him to the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati, where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Classical Guitar Performance under the guidance of Professor Clare Callahan. He continued his education at Austin Peay State University, obtaining a Master’s Degree in Classical Guitar Performance, studying with Dr. Stanley Yates. It was during this period that Bryce was introduced to the vibrant world of fingerstyle guitar, inspired by artists like Chet Atkins, Merle Travis, Jerry Reed, Tommy Emmanuel, Andy McKee, and Antoine Dufour.

Armed with a deep understanding of technique and music theory, Bryce began composing his own fingerstyle guitar pieces. His debut album, "First Sip," released in 2017, garnered critical acclaim from outlets like Minor 7th, which praised his "melodic diversity" and the intricate interplay of melodies and contrasts in his compositions. This album marked the beginning of a distinctive voice in the fingerstyle community, where Bryce seamlessly weaves together his myriad influences into a sound that is both unique and familiar.

JUSTIN CLYDE WILLIAMS WRITES SONGS.

Sometimes he writes them with his buddies.

Armed with a flattop or backed by a full band, Justin Clyde Williams takes listeners on an emotional journey with his songs and stories you can relate to no matter where you call home.

Capturing the full spectrum of life, the good times and bad most of his songs you’ll hear serve as a soundtrack to his own experiences with love, death, heartache and that one time he “ate a little bit too much of that gummy bear”

Raised on sounds between bluegrass and rock ‘n roll with a variety of influences, when he’s not performing himself, it’s not uncommon to see Clyde playing sideman for one of his bud-dies or appearing with Tyler Hatley in The Dick and Tammy Show.

Justin Clyde Williams always leaves people wanting more with an unwavering experience that is blunt, therapeutic, candid and above all - unforgettable.

In 2013, frontman Tanner Blevins and guitarist Patrick Brumback shared a Morehead State dorm hallway and musical dreams. With Tanner’s older sister Amanda joining on vo-cals and songwriting duties, the band quickly took shape, releasing Conclusions in 2014 — a charmingly DIY debut full of personal, scornful laments and loose acoustic-pop, setting the tone for the heartfelt, genre-blurring path ahead. They followed with 2015’s Growing Pain EP.

Chasing a bigger sound, the band headed to Nashville to record The Edge EP at Blackbird Studios. A run of polished singles followed — “All of Me,” “Halfway,” “New Addiction,” and “Tubesox” — recorded back home at Lexington’s Shangri-La Studio. With the addition of powerhouse drummer Matt Holleran and bassist Jared “Hippie” Davis, Wicked Peace also dove deep into production work, building their own Butchwood Studios in the process.

Over the next few years, the band entered their most prolific era: four EPs (The Portland EP, The Evening EP, The High Road EP, Scott Named the Band (Live at Butchwood)), high-energy singles like “(Take Off My) T-Shirt” and “Ur Welcome,” and — at last — their first full-length album: 2019’s Rock N Roll Racecar, a full-throttle showcase of their growth, hu-mor, and heart.

In 2023, the band returned with Wicked Peace, a self-titled record that sharpened their hooks and expanded their palette — delivering 10 hummable, harmonized songs about heartbreak, resilience, and boats.

Now in 2025, Wicked Peace celebrates 13 years together with two retrospective releases

Teddy and the Rough Riders are a Nashville-based country-rock duo composed of songwriters Jack Quiggins and Ryan Jennings. They emerged from the city’s indie-rock scene of the late 2000s and early 2010s, before turning to embrace the deep country roots of Music City, blending garage rock, psychedelia and classic country into a unique “cosmic Americana” sound.

Their 2022 self-titled LP was produced by fellow Nashville artist Margo Price; it set the stage for their 2024 follow-up album Down Home, which clocks in at just 33 minutes over 11 tracks and hones their blend of twang and distortion. Touring internationally in Europe, the UK and the U.S., Teddy and the Rough Riders are positioning themselves as more than just a revival act—their ambition is to re-weave the lost threads of country-rock into something fresh and forward-looking.

According to American Songwriter, “their sound is defined by the kind of road-worn storytelling you’d associate with Hank Snow or The Band—but tinted with the rebellious energy of a garage-rock outfit.

Hailing from Spartanburg, in the Upstate of South Carolina, the band came together during 2020 to back up a solo musician named Clay Johnson. They stuck together and spent the last five years developing a sound for Clay's tunes, building them up in the local bar scene and working relentlessly before they would strike out on their first tour in the fall of 2023. They released their debut record, ‘In Time’, on September 12th, 2025. With songs about life, love, and experiences growing up In Upstate Carolina. The band weaves together multiple sounds and genres within the southern music tradition.