In 2014, it appears that Balsam Range could be headed for the same fate. The guys are providing music for and appearing in the film, Careful What You Wish For, now in production at Lake Wiley near Charlotte, North Carolina.
Set for a 2014 release, the film by Elizabeth Allen is a crime thriller starring Dermot Mulroney. Paul Sorvino also stars as the local sheriff, who just so happens to be a bluegrass picker. His band is portrayed by Balsam Range, along with current collaborator John Driskell Hopkins, who plays the Sheriff’s Deputy.
Guitarist Caleb Smith tells us that they performed three original songs for the film, two from Hopkins, and the other written by Hopkins with fiddler Buddy Melton. All of the band will be featured on screen, both picking and singing, and as extras in a number of scenes.
Sounds like fun. Congrats! Balsam Range, based out of Haywood County, includes members Buddy Melton (fiddle player and lead singer), Tim Surrett (bassist, vocalist, and occasionally resonator guitar player), Marc Pruett (banjo), Caleb Smith (guitar player and vocalist), and Darren Nicholson (mandolin player and vocalist).