Time Sawyer’s name reflects the pull between the past and the future. The character Tom Sawyer evokes the rural background and love of home that the band shares. Time is a muse for songwriting; it’s the thread that runs through life, bringing new experiences and giving us a sense of urgency, while still connecting us with our past.

The folk-rock band has performed on the stages of some of the Southeast’s most iconic festivals, including Merlefest, Floydfest, Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion, Albino Skunk Music Festival, and Carolina in the Fall. They’ve shared bills with American Aquarium, John Craigie, Hiss Golden Messenger, Langhorne Slim, John Moreland, Steep Canyon Rangers, The Wood Brothers, Susto, and many more.  

In March 2020 the band started a variety livestream called “Sam on Sunday.” The show originated out of necessity, as the pause button was hit for live shows, but quickly, connecting with friends, family, and fans each week became just as important. As live music returned, the project transformed into “Sam on Someday,” bringing together guest artists of widely varying genres to create memorable, one-time-only collaborative experiences.

 Time Sawyer’s songs call out the attitudes and behaviors that lead to our divisions – the way that we show understanding to our friends and family, without thinking about how folks outside our social circle are experiencing their own problems, and are, at heart, just like us. The music does what might seem impossible. It holds listeners accountable, but at the same time, draws them in and makes them feel good about what we all have in common. One of Time Sawyer’s goals has always been for listeners to feel a sense of community and connection during the show, and then to keep it with them, long after the music ends.  
Written by Jody Mace

Time Sawyer Is: Sam Tayloe, Jordan Nelson,Court Wynter, & Nick Lawrence.  
Band Videographer/Photographer: Jake Rothwell   

Featured in the celebrated podcast "Southern Songs and Stories" along with Acoustic Syndicate, Jon Stickley Trio, Steel Wheels, Jim Lauderdale.

“Time Sawyer Strikes All the Right Chords with ‘Wildest Dreams’ ”— Lisa Snedeker, Huffington Post

“These are songs the listener will find themselves compelled to turn to again and again for the assurance of the vocals, the talent of the instrumentation and because the album is just that good.”— Jennifer Harp, No Depression

“Lead singer Sam Tayloe’s voice has an appealing open quality that particularly shines in the upper parts of his range, and banjo player Houston Norris’ harmonies add a new dimension to this album.”— Glide Magazine

“This music is a cross-pollination of indie-folk & country-rock, progressive in nature, but still rooted in tradition and with southern spirit. ”— Sarah Fuller Hall, No Depression

“Time Sawyer have back country America dust layered finely in their songs. The folk rock the band delivers has an easy Americana texture, influenced by peers from Poco through The Jayhawks and beyond.”— The Alternate Root

"Standing at the crossroads of rustic folk, mountain bluegrass and rocking alt-country, Elkin, N.C.’s Time Sawyer is a young band with plenty of old soul. They craft catchy, uplifting, not-too-polished tunes that retain the uncertainty and grit of daily life. The hooky but rough-hewn indie Americana of Ryan Adams, Justin Townes Earle and Jeff Tweedy are obvious influences, but the band’s roots stretch far and wide to include echoes of Buddy Holly’s rockabilly shuffle and Nashville Skyline-era Bob Dylan’s countrified warble. With an average age of 24, the foursome is energetic — they’ve released four albums in three years — and musically mature, weaving banjo, guitar and harmonica into an easy-going, organic sound that seems to have sprung fully formed from the Yadkin Valley soil.
                           -Pat Moran, Creative Loafing CLT

“Their sound [is] more a crossroads between early Jeff Tweedy, Uncle Tupelo alt-country, and modern indie-Americana superstars like Mumford and Sons and The Head and The Heart. Their songwriting is charismatic, and they are all technically capable musicians”
           - S. Preston Duncan, RVA Magazine