Philip Bowen preps for hometown shows

Fresh off an ambitious summer tour and looking at new music on the horizon, Philip Bowen is heading home for a visit this weekend.

While the Montgomery native will get the chance to mingle with family and friends from the Upper Kanawha Valley and beyond, Bowen will also be working.

“Philip Bowen Homecoming in the Hills” will be staged at Davis Hall in Montgomery on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 11-12. Bowen will play a show with Jonathan and Abigail Peyton on Friday at 7 p.m., followed by a Saturday 1 p.m. matinee with Khegan McLane and a Saturday 7 p.m. show with Brennan Edwards. For more, visit www.philipbowenmusic.com/tour/.

The Appalachia-fused vocalist/musician/storyteller said via email Monday that he’s fully anticipating this weekend’s shows.

“These hometown shows mean the world to me,” he said. “It’s something I’ve been looking forward to since we first started dreaming it up back in March.

“We originally planned on maybe one show, and due to demand we’ve increased that to three shows.”

According to Bowen, the Friday and Saturday night shows are both sold out (“with just a very small handful of single ticket seats available at the door”), and there were still some tickets available for the Saturday matinee for anyone who wasn’t able to snag tickets for the evening shows.

“It’s amazing that we’ve sold over 700 tickets to these shows in Montgomery, and we have people coming from 10 different states,” said Bowen, an “America’s Got Talent” semi finalist in Season 18. “The best part about all of this to me is that we are having a show in Montgomery for the hometown folks.

“I’m really hoping to grow this into something year over year that the community can get excited about and look forward to each fall. I’m also very excited for people to hear each of the opening acts that are coming in for the shows. Jonathan and Abigail Peyton, Brennan Edwards and Khegan McLane are all incredible.”

Bowen arrives back home on the heels of a productive summer.

“Summer tour has been great,” he said. “I felt like we were all over the map the past few months, and even had our first stops out west with a couple shows in the Denver area.”

Those tour stops have allowed Bowen to continue to hone his musical repertoire and presentation. “I’ve learned a lot about what it means to put on a quality show night in and night out, and I’m so thankful for all of the folks that have come out to support my music,” he said. “(The year) 2024 has been an incredible year. I’ve had the highest number of solo shows yet, and also had some great opening slots for artists like Wyatt Flores and 49 Winchester.”

While treating audiences to familiar tunes, Bowen is also working on a package of new music. “I’ve also begun work on my second full-length album, and hope to finish that up in January or February,” he said. “I’ve been working with a great indie label out of Nashville, Cloverdale Records, on that album.”

Bowen said merchandise will be available at this weekend’s shows, and a meet-and-greet will be conducted at the merchandise table after each session.

“We’ve once again partnered with some amazing local artists and vendors for special merch for these shows,” he said. “We’ll have custom posters (Basecamp Printing) and T-shirts available, as well as our other merchandise featuring design by other great West Virginia companies like Kinship Goods and Hippie’s Daughter.

“WV Tourism is also sending down their Airstream and will have some fun stuff there for people to check out. The City of Montgomery is putting on an open mic night on Thursday evening, and many restaurants in town are running specials to make this a special experience for everyone visiting.”

Bowen has established a solid following on social media and at various concert venues across the country, including NPR’s “Mountain Stage” and The Bluebird Cafe, in recent years as he has expanded his music. He released his debut album, “Old Kanawha,” in 2023.

“It is not every little community that has the privilege of welcoming home local successful talent to display their gift to the local citizens, but here we are,” said Montgomery Mayor Greg Ingram. “Montgomery has so much young talent and we are so proud to welcome Philip Bowen home for his ‘Homecoming in the Hills’ concerts on October 11 and 12.

“Not forgetting his roots and hometown is a testimony of Philip’s character. He is one of our first-class citizens and certainly among the elite. Welcome home, Philip.”

According to Angela Tackett, the Montgomery city administrator, the city is sponsoring a “Welcome Home” get together on Thursday, Oct. 10 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Montgomery Community Center. There will be free nachos and cheese, and an open mic night for local artists to perform will be held.

Parking for the shows is available on Third Avenue from the fire department down to the Mexican restaurant, and Second Avenue (Rt. 61) from the Earl Vickers Memorial Bridge to Rainbow Floral.