Spencer Elliott's instrumental guitar persona is two-fold: as a genre-defying solo performer and in the burning-down-the-house trio SE3. Like many stellar players, he has kept his day job in West Virginia's capital, even as his international fanbase grows.
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LISTEN/UP: Artists & Podcasters worth noting via BLACK BY GOD
From hip-hop innovator Shelem, based in Charleston WV, to a lineup of podcasts worth checking out, a heads up from Black By God on performers and podcasts to watch and hear.
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Chris Haddox tells stories from the hills, plus unexpected ones, too
On the occasion of the March 2022 release of his CD of high songcraft from the Appalachian hills, here's the world-premiere music video of the Chris Haddox tune "A Soul Can't Rest in Peace Beside the Four Lane — and a chat with the artist about songwriting and life.
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Harmonically urging Joe to back Build Back Better
A harmonic convergence of West Virginians come together on the new music video "Hey Joe," urging Joe Manchin to support the Build Back Better Act and its many climate measures.
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CHARACTERS, PART 1: A music video about how I never slept with Allen Ginsberg
What do you get when you mix famous poet Allen Ginsberg, a bonfire deep in the West Virginia hills, an interview, and a recording studio. Well, 30 years later you get a music video.
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SPOKEN/WORD: “The Cold Visitor” by Bobby Lee Messer
The autumn leaves brighten the rolling hills with a kaleidoscope of colors. Yet in the wings of all such beauty awaits The Cold Visitor. Watching. Waiting. Always present. | A Spoken Word multimedia performance of an original work by Bobby Lee Messer.
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MUSIC/VIDEO: “Sonata for Piano & West Virginia, No. 1”
We invite you to take five minutes from feeling harassed by the news or our own hectic heads for "Sonata for Piano & West Virginia No. 1." It offers another way of looking at West Virginia and those parts that remain uncorrupted, fresh, and true.
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COVERSTORY: Lady D, In Her Own Unfiltered Words
You might say Doris A. Fields, better known as Lady D, is having a well-deserved moment. Several, actually. We check in with one of West Virginia's finest singer-songwriters on the occasion of the release of her new CD, the heat-seeking "Disturbing My Peace."
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ART/WORK: A video gaze at new work by Sharon Lyn
You wouldn't think Twitter would be a place to watch an artist's development. But that would be the case with West Virginia artist Sharon Lyn. Here's a video of some of her striking newest work.
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NATUREGRAM: Two minutes of nothing but pines, plus some calming music
We can't share with you the sweet aroma of a stand of pine trees in Putnam County, West Virginia. But we can share with you the experience of standing among them. A new WestVirginiiaVille shelter-in-nature short video.
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COVERSTORY: BE THE CHANGE: The Tale of A Song and Its Two Songwriters
The COVERSTORY for our March 2021 edition is a twofer: Watch the debut of an original WestVirginiaVille music video of "Be the Change" — and hear songwriters Ron Sowell and Jon Wikstrom talk about the roots of their song and their long songwriting comradeship.
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VIDEO: Other ways of looking at a Mail Pouch barn
Mail Pouch barn signs became such an iconic, familiar image, showcased in tens of thousands of similarly framed snapshots, postcards, and saturated photographs that they are almost impossible to see afresh. We give it a go in "Chew This Way."
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VIDEO: “Chasing Birds in Snow”
Take a 2-minute excursion into the heart of the heart of Nature, as a bunch of birds play leapfrog in the midst of a West Virginia snow squall.
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VIDEO: “The Edge of Day”
Thoughts on high while at the edge of day. An original short video production featuring imagery and music by Bobby Lee Messer and words by Kim Wilkinson.
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VIDEO: A Sky-high View of the New River Gorge Bridge
The New River Gorge Bridge is one of West Virginia's most iconic landmarks. But have you ever seen it from an eagle's eye view—or maybe an Olympian god's?
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VIDEO: 9 Ways of Looking at ‘Hallelujah”
We dip into the archives of West Virginia cultural multimedia with a 2010 video appreciation of Albert Paley's striking 198,000 monumental sculpture, "Hallelujah," in Charleston WV. Get up close-and personal with a great work of art.
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VIDEO: The debut of “Animals in Appalachia” with “Deer Me”
In the start of a new short video series, "Animals in Appalachia" by WestVirginiaVille.com, a mother deer puts her foot down as she momentarily loses track of her two fawns.
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VIDEO: The Artist’s Work Considered As a Moving Picture Show
Sharon Lyn Stackpole's art considered as a video: "I always had a female character in my drawings either in illustration form or comic and I'd have her acting out whatever I was also living in my drawings. For some reason, this was reassuring and helped me to feel less alone."
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MAKEITSHORT: Three Not-the-News, Under-a-Minute Videos
Sometimes, you don't need serious. Sometimes, you need a dog, happily barking with excitement out the window of the car besides yours. Or a Japanese fire in the West Virginia outback. Or a singing Buddha bird. Here are three musical, under-a-minute videos.
