The beloved local band, Porch 40 played a reunion show to a packed house at Lazy Hiker Brewing in downtown Sylva Aug. 24.
In September 2014, Porch 40 played the same venue, then Mad Batter Food and Film, for the release of their debut album “Spread It Heavy.” Ten years later, tickets sold out to their loyal fan base just as they had for the release of their first album.
The excitement was palpable as the band took the stage and opened with one of their most popular songs, “Left Hand Cigarette.” They followed with other songs from “Spread it Heavy” and their second and final album “Radio Edit.” In another parallel to their first album release, the reunion show was opened by local reggae band PMA.
Porch 40 began in a farmhouse near WCU. “We were just a bunch of college guys who wanted to jam. We weren’t even sure we wanted to become a band yet,” saxophone player Scott Burr said.
Lead singer and guitarist Drew Duncan and violinist Mitchell Metz set out to form the band in 2012, recruiting Burr, bass player Carter McDevitt and former drummer Spencer Bradley.
Current drummer Brett Wilson joined in May 2016 after Bradley’s abrupt departure from the group. “I had my own projects going on, so they knew that I played drums. In an act of desperation, they called me for a show that was scheduled the same day,” Wilson said.
That act of desperation proved to be fruitful and Wilson became a permanent member of the band.
They described their genre as progressive funk-rock, taking inspiration from bands like Primus and Vampire Weekend. “I tell people it’s Hozier covering Rage Against the Machines,” Metz said of the band’s sound.
Before the reunion, their last show was March 16, 2020. Compounded with canceled shows due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the band said the music scene was beginning to wear on them both finically and mentally. “The burn out was very real. We had been playing for 8 years straight…When we stopped playing there wasn’t any bad blood, but there was definitely resentment built up from the burn out.” McDevitt said.
For now, the band doesn’t have any plans to get back in the game, though they could see themselves playing a few more shows. Duncan said the reunion is about getting back to having fun with their music and finding closure for themselves and their fans.
Burr sang lead on their final song, a cover of “Killing in the Name” by Rage Against the Machine, before telling the audience, “We’ve got people here who we haven’t seen in many years, people who traveled from all over the world to be here. Thank all of you for being here, because that really hits home for all of us, and it’s you that made tonight special…It’s been a pleasure and maybe, maybe not, the last time Porch 40 plays a show.”
