BELLOWS FALLS — The Chapel Hill, N.C.-based multi-instrumentalist duo Violet Bell will co-bill the Stage 33 Live listening room with The Milkhouse Heaters on Sunday, June 19, in a limited-seating 4 p.m. matinee with a special discounted ticket price of $10 in advance through stage33live.com or $15 at the door.
The band Violet Bell describes themselves as “re-wilding Americana with a lush, sinuous sound woven from folk, soul, bluegrass, and jazz with notes of blues, world, and classical.”
Omar Ruiz-Lopez was born in Panama and raised in Puerto Rico, and Lizzy Ross was born and raised in Maryland and New York City. Each brings a unique perspective on the traditions and influences that inform their music.
Prior to forming Violet Bell in 2016, Ross was a two-time Kerrville New Folk finalist and won Floydfest's On the Rise contest and a Carolina Music Award, while Ruiz-Lopez toured with Jonathan Byrd, Crystal Bright, Steph Stewart, and Chocolate Suede and composed several pieces for the Durham Symphony Orchestra. The combination of Ross's singer-songwriter strengths, Ruiz-Lopez's wide range, and their individual and combined muses and passions “is a powerful intersection,” according to a news release.
They've played hundreds of shows from Montreal to Miami and have been featured at festivals across the country. In addition to touring, both describe themselves as passionate about music education for underserved communities, active in several organizations that engage communities of all ages.
Jan and Mike Sheehy of The Milkhouse Heaters are from of the Boston music scene, where they were nominated for a Boston Music Award and shared the stage with The Black Crowes, Corey Glover, Fuel, Feeder, and Hum, and their songs are on compilations alongside the likes of G. Love & Special Sauce, Jack Johnson, Burning Spear, and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. Their music has been licensed to television shows on ABC, VH1, MTV, ESPN, and ESPN 2.
They moved to southern Vermont in 2003, rolled Americana into their punk roots, and became The Milkhouse Heaters. They've opened for Fred Eaglesmith and closed for Billy Bragg, had two songs featured on The Shoulder to the Plough CD, and have been invited performers multiple times at the Roots on the River Festival.
In addition to it being Father's Day, June 19 is also Bellows Falls Alumni Weekend - with the annual alumni parade featuring floats designed, built, and populated by Bellows Falls Union High School graduating classes through the years, running right through downtown a couple blocks from Stage 33 Live's front door. Cars won't be allowed through downtown from approximately 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., so concert attendees may arrive early and enjoy the parade, or plan to arrive after 3 p.m.
The COVID-19 protocol in the room will be the community guidelines in effect on show day. Currently the guidance is that masks are optional, although that may change without notice. Respect those who choose to mask.
Seating will be a minimum of eight feet from the stage and set up in pods. Those who wish to make a custom pod for their party may. People who have already arrived and have arranged their seating will not be expected to move, and their perimeter should be honored.