A musical escape with Esther and the Exiles

Infused with Music

Esther and the Exiles offer a unique experience

by Allison Andrews photography by Darren Bowen Photography

Esther Alcamo couldn’t have predicted that a conversation struck up at a child’s playdate would lead to the musical journey on which she finds herself.

It all started when her husband, Sal, picked their kids up from a friend’s house. He noticed Jon Strickland’s home was full of musical instruments and asked about them.

Music became a recurring topic of conversation among the two families, but it didn’t stop there. “We all had these wide-ranging musical influences so went from talking about music to saying, well, let’s play some music together just for fun,” says Esther. “Playing together became another kind of conversation because the music itself is its own language.”

Esther (vocals, piano) is the face of the popular Davidson-based band Esther and the Exiles. Her husband Sal (vocals, bass) and friend Jon Strickland (vocals, guitar) round out the trio. They occasionally add a drummer into the group.

A long-time music educator, Esther says it was actually her husband who drove the band to play in a more formal setting. “We would spend a lot of time in breweries and restaurants that had live music and say, “Why don’t we do this? We should,” she says.

Soon, they worked up a setlist and played their first paid gig at Rock Bottom Brewery in Charlotte in September of 2018. Now they make regular appearances at D9 Brewing Lake Norman in Cornelius and Piper’s Galway Hooker in Huntersville. You can also book them for private events.

JUggling priorities

Managing a growing family between day jobs and night gigs keeps the trio busy. “We try not to step on our family’s toes and take care of them through it,” she says. Esther is a CMS elementary music teacher. Sal is a project manager for Bank of America, and Jon is an elevator field engineer.

The group comes from diverse musical backgrounds. Esther, who grew up singing in church, and Sal are native New Yorkers. Sal comes from a musical family. Two siblings are musicians, including a brother who played Carnegie Hall.

Strickland’s great uncle Arthur Smith is well known in the Charlotte music scene. A popular radio and TV host in the Carolinas, his show, “The Arthur Smith Show” was the first nationally syndicated country music show on television with performers like Johnny Cash. Smith also developed and ran the first commercial recording studio in the Southeast. The movie “Deliverance” used his song “Dueling Banjos.”

Given their backgrounds, it’s no wonder the group has wide ranging musical influences. Esther had no problem ticking off their influences from country blues to KISS and Grammy-nominated rocker Grace Potter.

From left to right: Esther Alcamo, Salvatore Alcamo, and Jon Strickland.

Upcoming September Performance Dates

Friday, Sept. 3 and Sept. 25 at Piper’s Galway Hooker, 7-10 p.m. Saturday Sept. 19 at Aloft Langtree, 9 p.m.-1 a.m. Friday Sept. 24 at D9 Brewing LKN, 7-9 p.m.

A soUlfUl soUnd

Describing their sound proved more difficult. According to Esther, “the band combines classical piano with a touch of gospel and jazz, country-infused blues guitar and a driving yet soulful bass and rhythm with vocals which pretty much run the gamut from gritty and emotional to serene and sublime.”

However you want to describe it, Esther and the Exiles will make you want to sing along whether it is crowd favorites like “Feel it Still” by Portugal, classics like “Rhiannon” by Fleetwood Mac, or the bluesy “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton. Esther and the Exiles play songs from the ‘60s through current-day favorites.

Their next venture is recording some of their original songs.

Esther says, “We’re playing music because we want other people to experience, and enjoy the groove, enjoy the moment, and the feeling of experiencing music.”

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