BIOGRAPHY
"The Atkinsons light up a crowd from the moment they take the stage. Tight melodies wrapped around a fire-brand message of lost hope and forlorn women. Open up a whiskey bottle, ease the chair back on the cabin porch and let the music take over."
- J. Tayloe Emery, Menokin Americana Music Festival
The Atkinsons first set foot on Richmond, VA stages in the early 2000s and have been playing regularly ever since. The band melds roots, country, and rock music into their own style of rambling swing rock & roll. Heartfelt story-telling is at the core of The Atkinsons, and it is complemented with three-part harmonies layered over mandolin, fiddle, drums, bass and electric guitars. The Atkinsons influences run the gamut from country, mountain, bluegrass, to straight-up rock & roll music, and the sound ends up being quite a musical stew.
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The band has enjoyed playing many venues in and around the Richmond area such as The Broadberry, The National, Hardywood Brewery, Richmond Music Hall, and The Tin Pan to name a few. The Atkinsons have also been able to play some large festivals and events including Floydfest, Front Porch Fest, Camp Barefoot, the Annual Church Hill Irish Festival, Cardinal Point Winery’s Annual Oyster Roast, the Carytown Watermelon Festival, and many more.
The Atkinsons have recorded two albums - "American Gothic" and "Mile Marker" - and are currently in the studio working on their third. You can find the band on iTunes, Spotify and Youtube. The Atkinsons are an original band but often pepper their sets with some fun covers as well.
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They have shared the stage with many great bands such as American Aquarium, Grace Potter, Mipso, Sarah Shook and the Disarmers, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Scott Miller and the Commonwealth, Miss Tess, Andrew Leahey & The Homestead, Wrinkle Neck Mules, Jackass Flats, The Judy Chops, and many others.
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MUSIC
"This is the kind of alt-country album that sticks with you till the end. Great instrumentation, musicianship, and song structures, pristine recording." - Sounds of RVA voted The Atkinsons "Mile Marker" CD as #2 Top Album from RVA
The first full length recording ended up being the 11 song American Gothic, which in essence is a short novel set to music. It follows the misfortunes of the protagonist from his early youth, to his entry into adulthood, and eventually to his untimely death. The upbeat musical style balances out the dark undertone of the lyrics, and together makes for a record that's easy to listen to yet hard to describe. The Atkinsons followed up American Gothic with their second release Mile Marker, which takes the band on a journey through new territories of swampy roots and country swing to Texas Cajun and straight-up rock. Though cut from the same cloth, the new record doesn't pick up where the first album left off. It follows its own path from the back roads to the highways that inevitably lead you back home. Mile Marker celebrates where the band has been and where it's headed.
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Below are three songs from both full length records American Gothic and Mile Marker.
CONTACT US
Interested in booking the band? Email us at info@theatkinsons.us.
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