The Chattanooga Market

The Barefoot Movement is an acoustic trio with members hailing from Granville County , North Carolina and Oneida, TN. The group fuses the styles of bluegrass, old-time, Americana, and rock, creating an eclectic, original sound, featuring interweaving harmonies, progressive instrumentation, and accomplished songwriting.
When singer-songwriter and fiddler Noah Wall left North Carolina to attend school at East Tennessee State, she hoped to meet and learn from a wide variety of musicians while a student of the Bluegrass, Old-time, and Country Music Program offered there. She organized a band, and along with fellow founding barefooter, mandolin player Tommy Norris, the group began applying for every venue that was receptive to the roots music movement. They spent the summer of 2009 taking their music to the Appalachian Mountains and beyond, playing over 40 shows, some as close by as Johnson City’s Acoustic Coffeehouse, and some as far away as New York City’s Googie’s Lounge.

In the fall of 2009, Quentin Acres was added to the lineup. He and Noah befriended one another when they both were chosen for the Old-Time Pride Band at ETSU. “Quentin is so energetic and he has such a powerful voice,” says Noah. “I felt immediately connected to him.” The Pride Band Director, Roy Andrade, formerly of The Reeltime Travelers, had a similar impression, saying “Those two were born to sing together.” Quentin also fills the role of rhythm guitarist. Wall’s own vocals, once described as “goose-bump inducing,” channel the blues, jazz, and folk styles of her favorite singers. Her ear-catching original songs are supported by Norris’s genre-hopping mandolin style. With the instrumental pieces provided by Norris and Acres, the material is truly gaining recognition with audiences near and far.
The name “The Barefoot Movement” has many different meanings for the group. “The initial reason the name dawned on me is because I always feel more relaxed when I’m shoeless, and I noticed that before our shows would end, my shoes would be off”, says Noah. “So I think the name is just our way of encouraging people to sit back and relax once in a while-especially when listening to us play.”

The Barefoot Movement is taking folk music somewhere new without forgetting the old. They bring listeners something they can relate to-something they can truly understand. Everyone who hears them agrees, and if you give them a listen, you will too, The Barefoot Movement is contagious.