Open Tues - Sun: 5pm - until *Hours may vary depending on event schedule*
Open Tues - Sun: 5pm - until *Hours may vary depending on event schedule*
Rooted in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Blue Cactus cut their teeth on honky-tonk circuit, forging an electrified twang that blends folk, alt-country, and psychedelic rock. Across three critically acclaimed records, the band has built a devoted following throughout the South and beyond, pairing introspective songwriting with blistering guitar work that resonates as powerfully on stage as it does in the studio.
Their 2025 album Believer was featured on Bandcamp’s Best New Country list and led to appearances at SXSW, Hopscotch Festival’s main stage alongside Geese and My Morning Jacket, and PBS’s original series Shaped By Sound. From intimate clubs to major festival stages, Blue Cactus is known for performances that forge a genuine connection with audiences wherever they play.
Based in Central Virginia and with family roots in South Texas, Ramona and the Holy Smokes represent a new generation of honky tonk music. With powerful female vocals that cover an emotional range from determined to comic to vulnerable, and a talented backing band steeped in classic country and western styles of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, the band exhibits a “clarity and sincerity that bring Patsy Cline to mind” (Nashville Scene, 2025). Fronted by Ramona Martinez, whose songwriting has earned her recognition from Wide Open Country as one of the “15 Latino Artists Shaping Country Music,” this Charlottesville, Virginia-based band is rooted in the traditional sounds of country music but unafraid of pushing boundaries and highlighting the connections across border cultures.
They have appeared at several Americana festivals including Red Wing Roots (2024), Rooster Walk (2025), and Bristol Rhythm & Roots (2025), and has opened for touring artists like Margo Cilker, Colby Acuff, Willi Carlisle, Redd Volkaert, Joshua Hedley, Donna the Buffalo, and Kashus Culpepper. Their self-produced debut album, Ramona and the Holy Smokes, a collection of original songs about heartache and resiliency, was released on September 26.