PEOPLE | CULTURE | HAPPENINGS | TRENDS beach bites This holiday season, Christmastime revelers can roll out gingerbread dough and wrap paper packages with string to the sound of a previously unreleased track by the late Wilmington flamenco guitarist, Paco Strickland. The “Port City Christmas Jam 2014” album, a double-disk set, will feature Paco, along with rock band Groove Fetish, and country band Bootleg Dynasty, and other local artists. Both CDs were recorded by Low Tide Studio, and all proceeds benefit Nourish NC, a local nonprofit that delivers food to school children in New Hanover County. Brad Lackey, the lead singer and song writer for Bootleg Dynasty, recalls his experiences recording music for the 2013 and 2014 albums. “We had so much fun; we came back for another round,” Lackey says. With a mother who taught piano and a father who played banjo, Lackey grew up surrounded by music. Even his band name is a reflection of his family. “I have some distant relatives that were huge bootleggers in Virginia a long time ago,” Lackey says. The name Bootleg Dynasty also reflects the band’s sound. “We have a lot of rock roots and Americana influences,” he says. Some of his biggest inspirations are David Mayfield, Neil Young and Johnny Cash. “I love the outlaw country,” he says. For the “Port City Christmas Jam 2013” album, Bootleg Dynasty recorded a traditional hymn, “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.” However, for 2014 the band recorded something more modern. Its original Christmas song, “Falling Rocks,” is about a truck driver trying to get home for Christmas morning. Benji Smith, the bassist in No Dollar Shoes, says his band recorded a cover of “Mele Kalikimaka,” a Hawaiian Christmas song, for the 2013 album. “The cool thing about the music community in Wilmington is that there’s such camaraderie between the bands,” Smith says. The “Port City Jam 2013” album raised more than $3,000 for Nourish NC. While many children from low-income families receive free or reduced-price lunches at school, Nourish NC ensures these children have food during the weekends and school holiday breaks. “It all goes toward food,” says Greg Blair, warehouse manager of Nourish NC. “This year, our goal is to reach 500 kids by Christmas.” Blair says it costs $32 to feed a child during Christmas break. The album’s producer, Paige Snow, also has an ambitious goal. “We want to distribute 1,000 CDs this year,” he says. Unlike traditional Christmas albums, they are not available for purchase. They will only be distributed to people who make financial contributions to Nourish NC. For more information about Nourish NC, visit www.nourishnc.org To learn more about “Port City Jams 2014,” visit www.facebook.com/Port CityChristmasJam Music Feeds Young Souls Jingle Jams By PAM CREECH Photography by JOSHUA CURRY Jesse Stockton records “Let it Snow” in the Low Tide Studio, for the second annual Port City Christmas Jam album. 13 www.wrightsvillebeachmagazine.com WBM
December 2104
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