Spread it heavy: WNC rockers Porch 40 return
Porch 40 will play Lazy Hiker Brewing in Sylva Aug. 24. File photo
It was a special time and place when rock-n-funk act Porch 40 emerged onto the vast, vibrant Western North Carolina live music scene. In a landscape of mostly bluegrass, Americana and country acts, to see something of local origin with loud electric guitars and amps cranked to 11 was, well, refreshing.
“The way we connected musically felt and sounded different than anything any of us were used to hearing,” said bassist Carter McDevitt. “We intended to combine the genres of music we all liked in a way that we hadn’t heard, which wound up making us organically stand out from the crowd a little bit.”
The timeline begins in March 2012. Alongside McDevitt, the original lineup included lead singer/guitarist Drew Duncan, violinist Mitchell Metz, saxophonist Scott Burr and drummer Spencer Bradley. In 2016, drummer Brett Wilson entered the fold.
Bubbling up as a handful of students looking to simply get together and jam — perhaps even form a band and see where things go — on the campus of Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, the group took shape in “a now condemned farmhouse” near campus, cradled by the Blue Ridge Mountains.
“Although the place was dilapidated, there was magic there, too, [where] it seemed like the cultural epicenter of WCU,” Duncan recalled. “Our first show was at Papou’s Wine Shop [in Sylva], where Innovation Brewing is now. The response was positive from the get-go, even though we weren’t really good.”
From humble beginnings in Jackson County, Porch 40 would soon flourish with raucous, “you had to be there” gigs at house parties down backcountry roads or onstage at long gone establishments like Soul Infusion Tea House & Bistro or No Name Sports Pub in Sylva and Nantahala Brewing in Bryson City.
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“When we were coming up, we’d play with everyone,” McDevitt said. “And, as a result, we built a wider network and absorbed a wider range of influences — this place built us.”
And, like any young band hungry and filled with piss and vinegar, you grow and evolve — sonically, artistically and geographically. When I wrote about the band’s album, “Radio Edit,” in 2019 for this newspaper, I felt “when you place the Jackson County ensemble’s melodies against the likes of Elvis Costello, Dave Matthews Band and Maroon 5, you can precisely see and hear the similar sonic blueprints Porch 40 is working with.”
“We’ve always strived to be a mixed bag stylistically and we’ve been getting more comfortable pushing ourselves outside our comfort zone,” McDevitt told The Smoky Mountain News at the time. “We’ve never been afraid to try new genres, new sounds and new song structures. We love what we do and we’re not tired of experimenting with it.”
By 2017, Porch 40 was riding high, playing bigger and better shows around our backyard and greater Southern Appalachia, including opening slots for the likes of The Doobie Brothers, The Marshall Tucker Band and REO Speedwagon. Eventually, the outfit opened for legendary funk/rock act Galactic in August 2017 at the now-defunct New Mountain AVL in Asheville, ultimately stepping onstage to a massive outdoor crowd of thousands.
“Moments like that change you,” McDevitt noted. “However, I’d put a packed hometown show up with all of it. Nothing beats hometown fans shouting lyrics at you and jumping around during your set.”
And it was there at New Mountain, performing before the eyes and ears of Galactic, where the quintet caught the attention of Galactic bassist Robert Mercurio, who invited them to his studio in New Orleans, Louisiana, to capture what would become “Radio Edit.”
“The one thread that stands out throughout all of Porch 40’s career is simply hard work,” McDevitt said. “We played every single week and we were on the road playing shows every weekend. No excuses. We worked, practiced and wrote songs constantly, the result was we became surprisingly tight as a band — all through years of effort.”
But, like everything else that shifted and/or disappeared during the 2020 pandemic, the rising trajectory of potential and promise within Porch 40 came to a screeching halt with the complete shutdown of the live music industry until further notice. The band put its music and its future on ice, where it has remained since.
“When Covid came and the lockdowns started happening, our schedule was erased,” Duncan said. “We had also been on the grind for eight long years and we were tired of hitting the road every weekend.”
Skip ahead four years to the here and now. With a deep yearning to tie a bow on its unfinished business with its die-hard local and regional fans, Porch 40 has decided to host a one-off hometown performance on Saturday, Aug. 24, at Lazy Hiker Brewing in Sylva.
“We never really got closure with our fans and it always bothered us. This [Aug. 24] show is all about closure. Sorry it took four years,” Duncan said. “We decided to play one more show for us, for the fans, for one last good memory with Porch 40. I don’t know what lies ahead for us, but maybe this won’t be the last of it.”
Want to go?
After an extended hiatus, one of the Western North Carolina’s most popular rock acts, Porch 40, will host a special performance at 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24, at the Lazy Hiker Brewing outpost in downtown Sylva.
Admission is $10 at the door. Special guest Positive Mental Attitude (rock/reggae) will open the show. For more information, call 828.349.2337 or go to lazyhikerbrewing.com.
