Friday, March 22, 2024

“Part Americana, part neo-'70s folk rock, the band draws inspiration from classic artists such as the Flying Burrito Brothers and Bob Dylan as well as more modern groups Wilco and Futurebirds.” – Style Weekly

V I L L A G E S is what happens when a lifelong piano player has a midlife musical crisis, teaches himself guitar, writes 70+ songs in a little over a year, and then gets his super talented friends to make them sound cool.

"It's kind of an experiment that has gotten out of hand," says Justin Paciocco. "At first, I was looking for a new hobby and wondered if I could teach myself guitar. I figured it'd be something I'd play around with for a few weeks and then lose interest and move on to something else. Fast forward a year, and it's crazy to think I'm now fronting a new band, playing live shows, recording an album. This whole thing has been unexpected, but it's been a blast too."

Justin cut his teeth playing keyboards in the popular RVA jamband Farm Vegas. When that band called it quits in 2012, a burned out Justin stepped away from music and transitioned into "a more prototypical, 9 to 5 adult life." It was several years later that Justin caught the "guitar bug" and became re-inspired and ready to start a new project. The band -- known as VILLAGES -- includes a revolving collaboration of some of RVA's most plugged-in musicians: Stephen Lecky (Farm Vegas), Zach Hudgins (Jackass Flats), Corey Wells (Cris Jacobs Band), James Lloyd Hodges (Avers), and Stephen Kuester (Dogwood Tales). Their folky, catchy debut EP was recorded with the help of Zach Fichter (Turkuaz) and Jeremy Simmons (Elephant Ear Studio), and was released in 2018. They followed it up by releasing 2 singles in 2019, and plan on releasing a full album in early 2024.

Over the years, the band has played an impressive slate of shows, supporting nationally touring artists like Infamous Stringdusters, Yonder Mountain String Band, Del McCoury Band, Dead Man Winter (Dave Simonette of Trampled By Turtles), Daniel Romano, ONA, The Vegabonds, Hackensaw Boys, and Larry Keel, at venues like The National, The Broadberry, The Camel, The Southern, and Strange Matter.

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