Rock’em, sock’em: Live wrestling comes to The Orange Peel
Classic City Wrestling will make its Asheville debut on June 28. The unique events bring together professional wrestling and live music.
Donated photos
When he was just a kid, Cole Taylor vividly remembers the first time he watched wrestling on TV. It was a World Wrestling Federation (WWF) show called “Superstars” that was mixed in with the Saturday morning cartoons. Taylor was utterly captivated by the spectacle.
“I watched it religiously and learned the history of wrestling by renting a new tape every time my parents took me to Blockbuster,” Taylor reminisced. “Around that time, Santa Claus brought me an ‘Ultimate Warrior’ wrestling buddy for Christmas. From that point on, all bets were off. Every time wrestling was on TV, my parents would move the furniture out of the way and I’d go insane.”
Now 40 years old, Taylor is at the helm of Classic City Wrestling, a completely fresh, innovative way to watch the sport, one where he has been able to combine his two biggest passions — wrestling and live music.
“I want the audience to walk away feeling like they experienced a unique piece of art,” Taylor said. “Part rock show, part wrestling, but a fully unique vibe and experience. Part of what art does is that it makes you feel good — both music and wrestling influence each other.”
Thus, when someone wanders into a CCW showcase, what they’ll ultimately witness is professional wrestlers partaking in real matches in a real wrestling ring placed in the middle of a rock club, all while a live band plays in the background. To note, CCW will be making its Asheville debut on June 28 at The Orange Peel, with rising local rock act Rhinestone Pickup Truck providing the tunes.
CCW is based in Athens, Georgia (a.k.a.: “The Classic City”), one of the musical capitals of the United States. It’s also a city where Taylor found himself immersed in the music industry, most notable as the longtime tour manager for legendary Athens rock act Drive-By Truckers.
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About 12 years ago, Taylor started hosting CCW viewing parties at the Flicker Theatre & Bar. At that time, it was just Monday night screenings of old pay-per-view wrestling matches, but the place would pack out to capacity, everyone in attendance as riled up as Taylor.
“The shows organically brought in an eclectic mix of people,” Taylor noted. “While the die-hard wrestling fans showed up, a majority of the crowd consisted of musicians, artists and townies looking for a fun, quirky party on a non-traditional party night.”
But, the screenings were short-lived, seeing as Taylor had to hit the road with DBT, who tour relentlessly. However, when the 2020 shutdown occurred and the live music industry was on pause, Taylor returned to the idea of CCW and wondered how we could expand it.
“I have always fantasized about owning an independent pro wrestling company,” Taylor admits. “There were some fun pro wrestling promotions in the Athens area, but none that really reflect the vibe of the city of Athens. It needed to be a show that people who live the arts and culture would be excited about — there needed to be live music.”
Soon, Taylor got hold of Justin Legend, a wrestler and musician in Athens whom he met at the viewing parties. With extensive backgrounds in wrestling and the music industry, the duo combined forces and started working on the template for what would ultimately become what CCW is today — this seamless blend of wrestling and live music.
“As crazy as it sounded, [Justin], too, had similar visions for a promotion,” Taylor recalled. “We began brainstorming immediately, and a couple months after that we had our first show. The company has now had close to 50 shows and is a little over three years old.”
In a rather poignant setting, CCW played host earlier this year to the DBTs for a special promotion at Athens’ storied 40 Watt Club. It was a truly heartfelt moment for Taylor and the band.
“There is no greater feeling than to create a scene,” Taylor said. “When it becomes a scene, it’s no longer yours, but something bigger than your creation. I’m constantly blown aware to see that this thing Justin and I created means so much to so many people.”
With the upcoming Asheville showcase on the horizon, Taylor is ready and roaring to bring the CCW whirlwind of sight and sound to the mountains of Western North Carolina. For him, it all circles back to that pure excitement felt as a kid for wrestling and music, all now morphed into this platform, more so intersection, of art and passion.
“I feel like wrestling is an art form just like music, visual art, food, novels, etcetera,” Taylor said. “Part of what art does is that it makes you feel.”
Want to go?
An evening of professional wrestling and live rock music, Classic City Wrestling will hit the mat (and the stage) at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 28, at The Orange Peel in Asheville.
Rising local rock band Rhinestone Pickup Truck will provide the soundtrack for the evening. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
Front row seating is $30 per person, with second row seating $25 and standing room $20. The event is all ages.
For more information and/or to purchase tickets, visit theorangepeel.net.
