The New Familiars

Artist Information

Biography

. .. For Years now, North Carolina's The New Familiars have been touring & playing their own style of American Rock & Roll wherever and whenever they can. Drawing from the vast influences that they've collected throughout their collective careers, this quartet has shaped a sound that combines the nitty-gritty roots music of the Appalachia with guitar-drenched-drum-driven anthems of Rock & Roll. Through collective songwriting, howling harmonies, & multi-instrumental talent, their show can take you from a back porch hoe-down to a full on rock show at the change of an instrument.

Having played hundreds of shows from the sunny beaches of FL to the bustling cities of MA and from the Smokies to the Rockies, these gentlemen have seen some miles and have some stories. On an almost constant state of tour, they have managed to release a few EPs, a VINYL single, and are currently on tour with thier NEW LIVE ALBUM; all the while continuing work on a full length album. Look for them to be playing somewhere near you soon

Instrumentation

Justin Fedor - Vocals, Guitar, Mandolin, Banjo

Jordan Klemons - Banjo, Lap Steal, Electric Guitar

Josh Daniel - Vocals, Resonator Guitar, Guitar

Pat Maholland - Upright Bass

Daniel Flynn - Drums, Vocals

Discography

Between the Moon and Morning Light- coming in 2011

Live!- released September 2009

Mills River/My Girl (7" vinyl)- released April 19th, 2008

The Storm (EP) - released September 1st, 2007

The Black Rose (Live EP) - released February 2007

Audio

• So Alive
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• 9-2-5
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• Got This Disease --> Weight (live)
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Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• BEST OF CHARLOTTE 2008: Critics Pick - Best Local Band/Artist [+ Show ]
  

  The band’s take on Americana and folk gets infused with a good bit of rock ethic and rhythms that ca...The band’s take on Americana and folk gets infused with a good bit of rock ethic and rhythms that can give you goose bumps. As the crowds grow, the local shows are getting more sporadic, and they recently paid thanks to fans with a free, packed Neighborhood Theatre gig. Catch ’em on the cheap while you can!

• Music Events: The New Familiars [+ Show ]
  

  "A dynamic union of Delta blues and Appalachia folk that combines for a toxic new twist on Americana..."A dynamic union of Delta blues and Appalachia folk that combines for a toxic new twist on Americana music... With one hand on the headstone of folk and the other on the ever changing wheel of rock 'n' roll, The band is the latest up and comers of the Southeast's roots music revival."
  
  Matthew Godbey - 10/23/2008

• Spotlighted Gigs and Recommended Shows [+ Show ]
  

  "A Charlotte-based quintet of multi-instrumentalists who mix Old-Time instrumentation like mandolin,..."A Charlotte-based quintet of multi-instrumentalists who mix Old-Time instrumentation like mandolin, banjo and harmonica with electric guitar, Dobro and drums, they’re making a beeline to the top of many critics’ rave lists for their glorious, resplendently elegiac combination of traditional folk, bluegrass and blues forms with contemporary Americana and Southern pop that winks at the slightly psychedelic"
  
  Jim Reed - 9/3/2008

• The New Familiars - The Storm [+ Show ]
  

  "My first thought after hearing The Storm, The New Familiars' six song EP, was,"Damn, I wish this wa..."My first thought after hearing The Storm, The New Familiars' six song EP, was,"Damn, I wish this was longer." So I played it again. The Storm is a tantalizing introduction to the trippy folk rock of this Charlotte quartet.... 'Got This Disease' is (pardon the pun) one of the most infectious tunes I have heard in ages; it has been bouncing around my head for weeks, so much so that I have found myself spontaneously singing the chorus aloud around strangers, drawing more than an odd look or two. But that's okay—I don't mind sharing the fever this band gives me."
  
  Dave Stallard - Fall 2007

• Keep It Sacred [+ Show ]
  

  "The New Familiars defy simple classification. Instead, they reinvent the traditional, coating the t..."The New Familiars defy simple classification. Instead, they reinvent the traditional, coating the tried-and-true origins of folk music in a brand-new varnish of jam-band indie rock."
  
  Dino Lull - 11/05/2008
  
  http://metrospirit.com/index.php?cat=1993101070588705&ShowArticle_ID=11020411083767315

• The New Familiars - Live Review [+ Show ]
  

  By Jeff Hahne "The New Familiars may have only released a couple of EPs, but they aren't lacking ...By Jeff Hahne
  
  "The New Familiars may have only released a couple of EPs, but they aren't lacking for material in their live show. The band tore through a set that seemed to last forever – in a good way. Covers of Huey Lewis and Pink Floyd were mixed into a plethora of originals that had the crowd sweating, grooving and enjoying every strum of the banjo, every pick of the dobro, every scream, harmony or heart-felt note."

• Get Familiar with The New Familiars [+ Show ]
  

  by Alli Marshall "The New Familiars play a fresh (if not breakthrough) blend of country blues, fo...by Alli Marshall
  
  "The New Familiars play a fresh (if not breakthrough) blend of country blues, folk rock and gritty acoustic tunes... honky-tonk elements of Dobro and harmonica; mountain touches of banjo and rough-hewn harmonies made for ‘70s-era Southern Rock... they sound like rambling men with farmers tans and battered rucksacks splitting their time between the open road and the open arms of pretty hippie girls. At least, they sound like they could write the soundtrack to that movie."
  

• New Familiars' studio debut brews up The Storm [+ Show ]
  

  by John Schacht NEW FAMILIARS DROP THE STORM: The New Familiars call its sound "Folk-core Music f...by John Schacht
  
  NEW FAMILIARS DROP THE STORM: The New Familiars call its sound "Folk-core Music from the Foothills," and that's an apt description of the band's first studio release, the six-song EP The Storm, which celebrates its CD-release gig Saturday, Sept. 1 at the Visulite. Blending influences ranging from Woody Guthrie and the Grateful Dead to Kings of Leon and Ryan Adams, the Charlotte band delivers a mix of acoustic folk, bluegrass, rock and blues with a visceral intensity to match their raucous live gigs.
  
  The band shares songwriting credits between Eric-Scott Guthrie, Justin Fedor and Josh Daniels (James Stratford and part-time drummer Ryan Ramirez fill out the roster), yet the sound and narrative blends together as though written by one -- which they say is kind of the case, anyway.
  
  "We all do the writing, sometimes as a group and sometimes as individuals," says Guthrie. "When we have time we'll all sit down with a general theme in mind and we've had some great success at writing material as a group."
  
  "We've drawn the inspiration for all of these songs from our lives," Fedor adds. "We've lived these songs."
  
  People who haven't heard the sonic differences between The New Familiars and Charlotte's best-known acoustic unit would be wrong to assume that anybody's riding the coat-tails of The Avett Brothers.
  
  "I think we are more of a rock band then they are," Daniels says. "Plus, rowdy acoustic music is happening everywhere! It's not like they were the first band with a banjo and an acoustic."
  
  "The beauty of acoustic music is it's a level playing field," says Guthrie. "You don't have a bunch of modifications to change your sound, it's raw ... stock if you will. Personal style and technique is what differentiates musicians from one another in this genre.
  
  "I don't really worry too much about an 'Avett's overload' at all. In part because I think we're clued into what they're clued into. This is honest music, penned by the performers, sung with the heart on the sleeve, and I think that's the real reason why you're seeing this folk evolution starting to build serious momentum."

• New Familiars dish out fun acoustic folk [+ Show ]
  

  By Jarrett Oakley Contributing Writer "The New Familiars offer an organic acoustic sound. Deep...By Jarrett Oakley
  Contributing Writer
  
  "The New Familiars offer an organic acoustic sound. Deeply rooted in southern folk music, the band also interestingly blends in alternative country rock and dabbles in progressive rock.... There is a bridge in this band that will fill the vast gaps between your
  father’s generation and this one."
  

Setlist

We are, by nature, an original act and enjoy playing our own music, but we can't deny our influences and occasionally enjoy covering others works.

Recent artists we've covered:

Pink Floyd
Johnny Cash
The Grateful Dead
Bright Eyes
The Beatles
Huey Lewis and the News
Sly and the Family Stone
Curtis Mayfield
Bob Marley
The Temptations
various and sundry traditionals

Basic Requirements

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