Come out and enjoy a Midweek Melodies Concert Series featuring Capon Bridge's Drew Aclin & Taylor Berryhill!
**Food and drink specials available on Midweek Melodies Thursdays**
Drew Aclin:
If anything at all, I am a musician. I started on the piano at 6 and received my first guitar, as a gift, when I was 9. I practiced, first, under a teacher who taught me basic scales and styles that were mostly bluegrass oriented. I was well practiced and catching on well by the time I started taking lessons with my second teacher. He taught me bar chords and the basic structure of playing rock and after learning under him for two months, I began to solely teach myself from the age of 13 on. I was brought up mainly on rock 'n' roll (The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chili Peppers) but soon, and at an early age, began branching out into a variety of genres including jazz, metal, funk, R&B, raggae, and hardcore punk.
I began playing in front of live crowds during my piano years, at various recitals, starting around age 7. I remember always being so afraid before getting up on stage, nerves driving me crazy, and then sitting down, playing a few notes, and sinking into comfort. Through high school, I worked with my dad, who was teaching art at the time, to do a yearly "variety show" and establish a solid network of musicians and peers who enjoyed the performing arts as much as I did/do. The nervous feeling never stopped occurring, but through time and experience, I have come to appreciate the unique feeling that playing for a crowd provides and have to thank the different organizations that have given me a facet to perform freely and without judgement, including The River House.
My set list and aspirations for performances are constantly evolving but, as long as those who are watching have fun, clap their hands, and maybe draw connections with the music I love to play, I am getting my job done. I hope to only do justice to the artists who have influenced me and make sure every member of the crowd smiles at least once
Taylor Berryhill:
Hello friends!
I was born and raised in the Piedmont of North Carolina (around Charlotte) and really took to music once I started playing trumpet in the sixth grade. This branched my musical tastes to include forms of classical-symphonic and wind band repertoire, as well as jazz, blues, funk, soul, reggae, ska and other genres that incorporated “horns.” As a teenager, I picked up electric guitar, a leather jacket and a bad attitude to try and emulate the punk bands I was listening to at the time (though it was all a guise…I’ve always been a peace-loving hippie at heart, haha). I played in several bands throughout high school, rehearsing very loud music in very tiny rooms. Between that and going to equally loud shows every week I probably lost half of my hearing spectrum very early on in my musical career. So, naturally, I decided to study audio engineering in college!
I finished up my studies at Appalachian State University in the summer of 2010 and temporarily moved to Boston, MA, to intern at a recording studio before coming back to NC to graduate that December with a B.S. in Music Industry Studies. After half a year of working, living at home and generally trying to save as much money as possible, I moved out to Nashville, TN with a college friend and was determined to find work in the industry!
This proved to be way harder than an I ever anticipated, and I found living in Nashville to be very challenging for the first several years. I eventually bought a bike, however, and fell in love with cycling. I became a bicycle courier for the last couple years I was in Nashville but was still playing in various bands (ranging from Americana to hip-hop) and investing in some form of music, all the while.
My love of biking and desire to live out west (my sister lives in Northern California) spurred a spontaneous adventure. Once again, I moved back home to save money and eventually began a cross-country bicycle trip with my sights set on San Francisco…but have strangely found myself living in Capon Bridge, West Virginia, for the last year. Living and taking part in this wonderful little community has inspired me in so many ways and proved to be monumental in elevating my creative self. Life is beautiful and so very unpredictable in the best way possible!
$8 ticket. kids 12 & under free
get your tickets in advance here: www.theriverhousewv.org/event-registration