Barling and Collins at The Stage, February 7
Author: WTJU
Stephen Barling (guitar) and Brandon Collins (cello), known collectively as Barling and Collins or BC, are two rather reckless bastards who make ornery noise for the sheer jollies of it. They have not gotten a chance to do much of that in public since 2020, but they are resurfacing to support their favoite radio station in Central Virginia (and maybe beyond!).
This is a free event, open to all (although it is a part of the Folk Marathon so donations are welcome). Masks are required for all attendees. You can also listen on the radio (91.1 FM) or on-line, and even video stream it at WTJU’s Facebook page or YouTube channel. But concerts always sound better with you as part of the studio audience. WTJU is located at 2244 Ivy Rd in Charlottesville, right next door to Vivace. There is plenty of parking, both in our lot as well as the Sentara lot next door.
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Barling and Collins – “B.C”
Almost emerging from the malaise of late-1990s Charlottesville restaurant corners and small bar weekly gigs, Barling and Collins – the guitar and cello duo mostly referred to as “B.C.” – held their own for almost a quarter century until global pandemonia put a stop to it. Occasionally folksy but not quite folk, often rocky but not quite rock, B.C. are known for their offbeat and often downright obnoxious forays into the perverse, inappropriate, and just plain old silly. Fans might request tunes from the sweeter side of their homespun catalog but anyone stumbling upon one of their weekly outings at Miller’s or Blue Moon Diner or Tokyo Rose or Michael’s Bistro over the years was sure to be confronted with something to love or hate. Sometimes both simultaneously.
Proudly supporting Atsushi Miura’s 2003 album “Cheap and Fake” as part of his Dirty Round Eyes band, or joining the lineup of Freakfest, or opening the show for the Falsies at the Southern or the Hogwaller Ramblers at Fridays After 5, or even offending visiting rockstars from the VIP stage at FloydFest, B.C. has enjoyed low-key cult status as a group mostly only Charlottesville locals know about and mostly only if they were troubled enough to stay out way too late on a Sunday night.
With only two studio albums and half a live record to their name, they certainly haven’t tried too hard to get noticed. Both are also long-time members of Charlottesville reggae/rock combo The Cows and each has contributed to a pile of other purportedly enjoyable local projects including Full Flavor and the Unified Funk Theory, the Accordion Death Squad, Overdog, and Alligator, as well as creating an alter-ego children’s music project: Stephen Dogless featuring Barndoor Cowlegs.