A 21st century take on duet singing and a multi-instrumental septet of musicians are ready to storm the stage at The ArtsCenter in Carrboro.
The roots music duo, Cahalen Morrison and Eli West, will be playing today after an opening performance by the band Bevel Summers.
“It’s music I could listen to for hours,” said Art Menius, executive director of the center. “I believe bringing these young groups in is essential to understanding all kinds of music. There are now more than 1,700 living genres of music around the world, and we want to do our part in bringing that to the people of Chapel Hill and Carrboro.”
Menius first encountered Morrison and West’s music when they released their debut album in 2010. Since then, he’s endeavored to bring their unique sound to prominence in the Triangle.
“Many of the groups playing old-time music put very little emphasis on creating original music, and Eli and Cahalen are the exception,” Menius said. “Their sound stands out on radio because it’s so very different than the music being created by their brethren. It’s their second time in N.C., and their first time in the Triangle, so we’re very proud to give them their debut in The ArtsCenter.”
Morrison and West have been playing together for the last four years and have gained prominence among the top echelon of roots musicians.
“We’re interested in the brother-duo tradition of singing,” West said. “We take our music somewhere through original songwriting, but it’s all rooted in that tradition.”
Though West and Morrison both play multiple instruments and trade off during performances, they also have different styles and strengths they focus on.
“We’re very different musicians in our approach,” West said. “The inception of the song comes on his end. My skills are more about the collaboration, like arranging pieces and filling holes that were present in the first version.”
