Front Porch Student Opener Abi Wilkinson @ 6:30pm
Bahlmann Abbot plays one long set starting at 7pm.

A native of southern West Virginia and now living in the Charlottesville, Virginia area, Bahlmann Abbot grew up in a family fond of swapping stories and songs while gathered on his grandmother’s porch. Some of his songs reflect this love for story telling while others paint an impressionistic view of the struggles and rewards of love and loss. His songs are influenced by his various experiences as a carpenter, river guide, husband and father. As an architect whose focus is the design and renovations of the family home, he draws a parallel with songwriting to the design of a house. They both start as a fuzzy concept with disparate parts and evolve and gain clarity as one sketches over the plan or works over a particular melody line and lyric of a song. For him a song can be like moving through the different rooms of a house, each room referring to the last but offering a new revelation or view. A self-styled acoustic guitarist, Bahlmann’s music sets a distinctive mood which is embellished in the studio with the spare notes of his pedal steel. As a songwriter Bahlmann drew influence from a variety of writers, from the Texas based writers such as Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt to the troubadour from New England, Bill Morrissey. He is also a fan of more contemporary writers such as John Gorka, Sam Baker, and the front man for Sun Volt, Jay Farrar. For the upcoming show at The Front Porch, Bahlmann will be releasing his third album entitled, Wind Weight Water.

For more information on Bahlmann Abbot, please visit http://bahlmannabbot.com/

Abi Wilkinson is a 13yr old singer songwriter, from Charlottesville Virginia. She has been playing piano and guitar for several years, and currently takes lessons with Devon Sproule. Abi is deeply inspired by Taylor Swift, and can't wait to step out to The Front Porch stage.