Blue Wheel Drive

Blue Wheel Drive is an energetic and modern hard-driving bluegrass band based out of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Asheville, North Carolina. Blue Wheel Drive’s new CD recording features all original songs with hot instrumentals and tight harmony singing. Blue Wheel Drive's music is decidedly new, while staying true to the traditional music stylings of their first generation bluegrass heroes.

After a 2 year stint working for bluegrass fiddle legend, Bobby Hicks, Blue Wheel Drive moved on to their own style of bluegrass, showcasing memorable lyrics and melodies with dynamics and punch. Blue Wheel Drive's debut release is emerging as one of the best new bluegrass CDs with all original songs written by band members.
You won't be disappointed.

Rob Sine- Guitar & Vocals

Rob has been playing guitar and singing bluegrass songs from the time he was a small child. Splitting his youth between the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western Virginia and the farmland of Central Pennsylvania, he learned to play and sing from his musically rich family. Rob played in several local bands in Central Pennsylvania and Philadelphia before he moved down to Asheville, NC several years ago. Here he formed the band Blue Wheel Drive with mandolin player Rudi Ekstein, they perform frequently in the South East and serve as Bobby Hicks’ band. Rob also works during the day as a teacher at ArtSpace Charter School in Swannanoa, NC.

Andrew Blythe - Banjo & Vocals

Andrew has spent most of his life in the Etowah area of Western North Carolina, resting at the foothills of Mount Pisgah. He was drawn to music at a young age, coming from a family that is deeply rooted the mountain music that comes from Western North Carolina. Andrew studied at East Tennessee State University, which has one of the only collegiate Bluegrass programs in the country. Andrew has performed with many talented musicians, and at the age of 25 has quite a career ahead of him.

Rudi Ekstein- Mandolin & Vocals

Rudi Ekstein, CMH Records recording artist, discovered his love for Bluegrass music in the early 1970s, learning to play  in many different Bluegrass bands on a variety of instruments including mandolin, banjo, guitar, dobro. and upright bass.
He is now dedicated to the art of bluegrass mandolin and singing baritone. Over the years he has written and
recorded numerous original instrumentals, currently working on an all original Bluegrass album. Rudi has owned and operated his own commercial recording studio since 1990, Foxfire Recording, www.foxfirerecording.com, and since then has played for or produced and/or engineered numerous CDs for CMH, Rounder, Sugarhill Records, and performers like Tony Rice, Larry Rice, Josh Graves, Bobby Hicks, Byron Berline, John Hickman, David Grisman, Richard Green, Bill Keith, David Grier, Gabe Witcher, Herb Pedersen, Bill Bryson, Bill Constable, Gene Libbea, Dennis Caplinger, Pat Sauber, Laurie Lewis and other notables.

Rob Parks- Bass & Vocals

Rob Parks graduated from Temple University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Music Performance in 2011. He served in the United States Army Band as a Sergeant. He grew up in Central Pennsylvania and played in various types of bands around the North East. He moved to Asheville, NC and was a founding member of Blue Wheel Drive in 2011. Since then he has become a fixture on the Asheville Bluegrass scene performing in many local, regional, and nationally touring acts.