ABOUT THE MOUNTAIN SOLE PROJECT:
I’ve always been a closet fan of bluegrass. (Shh. Don’t tell.) Despite my desire to be a full-fledged City Girl and an ill-advised goth phase (good heavens), I grew up in an area where country music predominated, in the era before New Country and all its pop-like trappings, and foot-stomping banjo and saw-toothed fiddles were often the soundtrack for much of my young life. (And adult contemporary music, but I think I’ve blocked out the Diana Ross.)
A few years back, we played the Dixie Bee-Liners’ “Yellow Haired Girl” as the music for our show (see below, “About Elli”), and I downloaded a couple DBL albums after having the song stuck in my head for a good month or so.
To say I was hooked is probably an understatement. I was more of an evangelist, making everybody around me (even the little goth folks) listen to the albums. Most patted me on the head and gave me a that’s nice, dear, but it didn’t matter all that much. The soundtrack of my youth had become the soundtrack for everything adult, too, and evoked a kind of down-home feeling of connection for me.
Then, in April 2009, after a long sit-down discussion between me and my brain (which happens a lot), where I was trying to synthesize all my big interests into one (art journaling, writing, the study of Place, knitting, designing, et. al.), I heard about Virginia’s Crooked Road (see below’s “about the Crooked Road”), and it all clicked. Why not put together some kind of synthesis project — writing, audio. Serialized. Travel *to* the place, and let it inspire the Knitting, as well as recording the experience of Place?
The Mountain Sole Project was born.
ABOUT ELLI:
Elli Metz is known by quite a few aliases (Eliza, Elizabeth, Miss Violet, “Hey You In The Black”) and enjoys speaking about herself in third person.
She’s the creator and co-host of the knitting empire that is Lime & Violet, creatrix of Intention Yarns, and owner of Happy Housewife/Oak River Township perfume companies. By day, she works for a North Carolina-based marketing agency, and is still amused that her business cards read “Elli Metz: Starmaker”.
Born in rural Nebraska, she’s always thought of Seattle as her heart’s home, until North Carolina swooped in with its magnolia trees and humid blue skies and stole her pastyfaced northwesterner’s soul right outta the Cascades. She’s working on a wicked drawl.
You can contact her at eliza@themountainsoleproject.com, or through her personal (and slightly whiney) blog.
Mountain Sole is her third book; her first book of knitting patterns.
ABOUT THE CROOKED ROAD:
Southwestern Virginia’s Crooked Road came into being as a “destination” in 2003, when a group of folks into Heritage Music (bluegrass, blues, and gospel — all of which are plentiful along the Road) enlisted the state’s help in preserving and promoting the region. Through the tireless dedication of these folks, the region’s history is being showcased along a 253-mile stretch of winding two-lane road that one could ostensibly consider to be the birthplace of bluegrass in America.
All of that, however, doesn’t give an accurate picture of what the region actually is.
All touristy bits aside, the Crooked Road region of Virginia is a hotbed for talent of all kinds. Music that has its roots deep in our nation’s history is plentiful here, often following family lines. There’s an inordinate amount of musicianship here — a disproportionate amount, even. One local musician claims that this is because folks around this area like music more than they like football, but I suspect it’s something deeper, something cultural. It’s what I’m really here to find out.
In addition to the music-makers, there are also world-class artisans, creating some of the most exquisitely-crafted musical instruments on the planet. There’s a thriving arts community, jam sessions and festivals all year long, and a beautiful, rugged landscape in which the communities along the Road are inspired by.
From the fields of the Piedmont at Rocky Mount to the coal fields and the Blue Ridge Mountains — the Crooked Road is full of history, music, and a unique culture. I’m looking forward to diving into it, and bringing a little piece of it all to you.