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Andrew Heaton, pictured above, and The Packway Handle Band will share the stage with 13 other bands at the inaugural Red, White & Brewgrass Festival on Saturday.

Melting Point celebrates with Red, White & Brewgrass

By: GRACE MORRIS

Posted: 7/3/09

In the beginning, there was Athens, and Athens was the home of indie rock. Then a man named Bryndon said, "Let them be called The Packway Handle Band," and the bluegrass scene began to flourish in that indie rock town. And it was good.

"[It started] in a garden, with three bearded guys each wearing fig leaves and daring each other to drink the water - which was whiskey, it turned out," said Andrew Heaton, the band's fiddler.

Okay, so maybe those facts aren't straight from the book, but the first part of the story was true. "[The name] was literally blurted out by a guy with Tourette syndrome who knew the three bearded guys in the Garden," Heaton said. "Really. His name is Bryndon."

Since that fateful day in 2001, when the band name was quite literally declared, the members of The Packway Handle Band (PHB) have come a long way. They have released four albums and are working on a fifth. They have toured throughout the United States to the delight of bluegrass and non-bluegrass fans alike, and they have been finalists in the nationally acclaimed Telluride Bluegrass Competition three times.

If that wasn't enough, last Thursday the town where it all began took PHB's competition credentials up a notch when the band won the Flagpole Music Awards' Best Americana Band for the third time in row.

RED, WHITE & BREWGRASS FESTIVAL

When: 1 p.m. to midnight Saturday, July 4
Where: The Melting Point
Price: $15 (advance), $20 (at door), $10 (students)

"It feels good to feel like people care about us," Heaton said of the band's recent win. "Because we feel that we still care a great deal about all of them. Thanks, by the way, to everyone who voted, especially for us."

Perhaps one of the reasons PHB repeatedly does so well at awards shows is the band's widespread appeal both to bluegrass traditionalists and to those who admittedly dislike the genre. These contrasting fan groups may stem from PHB's ability to pair a very traditional "gather 'round the mic" performance style with a fresh take on what bluegrass music should sound like.

"We love and hate bluegrass and we love and hate non-bluegrass, and people can relate to that," Heaton said.

PHB's latest endeavor to please fans who love and hate bluegrass music is the first annual Red, White & Brewgrass Festival at the Melting Point on Saturday. The festival will include 13 other bands playing on two stages throughout the day.

"This was something that we discussed for a while with Troy Aubrey of AthensMusic.Net," Heaton said. "We knew the bands, and he had the venue. We tried to come up with a good, original name for whole thing and sort of struck out. However, this thing is going to be fantastic and we're going to make it an annual event."

With a new festival to spearhead and a new album in the works, PHB has its hands full, but the ambitious band has even higher hopes for the future … literally.

"We have been saying for years that we intend to be the first band, or at least the first bluegrass band, to play in space," Heaton said. "We have not forgotten that pledge. But you ask, is that all? Well, right now it is difficult to discuss the subject because some of our greater ambitions are somewhat confidential and are sure to be considered highly controversial."