ORDINARY ELEPHANT (pictured above)
Opener: Scott Cook
Thursday, September 7, 2023, 8:00pm
Tickets: $20
“One of the best Americana albums of the year”—Associated Press
International Folk Music Awards 2017 Artist of the Year Ordinary Elephant captivates audiences with their emotionally powerful and vulnerable songs, letting the listener know that they are not alone in this world. The collaboration of husband and wife Pete and Crystal Damore, their connection, and their influences (such as Gillian Welch, Guy Clark, Anais Mitchell) all meet on stage. “Two become one, in song…hand-in-glove harmonies surprise the listener with focused intensity and musical mastery,” says Mary Gauthier. The Associated Press is calling their latest album, Honest, “one of the best Americana albums of the year.” Ordinary Elephant was a 2023 Folk Alliance International Official Showcase Artist. Edmonton, Alberta, songwriter Scott Cook opens.
https://www.ordinaryelephant.net/
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JULIAN LAGE
Friday, September 8, 2023, 8:00pm
Tickets: $25
New music!
A former child prodigy, Julian Lage is now, in his early 30s, a veteran. He’s collaborated with Gary Burton, Jim Hall, David Grisman, Béla Fleck, and Charles Lloyd, as well as releasing albums as a soloist and leader. He comes to Michigan with a new release, “Squint,” that takes his music to a new level. Recording now for Blue Note Records, the virtuoso guitarist reflected on the label’s storied history and the way his own music connected with it. The new album weds incisive, expressive songwriting with the profound interplay Julian has honed
over the past few years with his deft trio featuring bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Dave King. “I felt like this was an opportunity to present new music born out of the Blue Note tradition as I’ve interpreted it,” explains Julian, who previously recorded for the label on The Nels Cline 4’s “Currents, Constellations,” and Lloyd’s “8: Kindred Spirits.”I absolutely love improvised music, and I’ve always been fascinated by singer-songwriter music. For me, the jazz that came out of Blue Note always engaged both sides of that,” Julian says.
http://www.julianlage.com/
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THE RFD BOYS
Saturday, September 9, 2023, 8:00pm
Door: $16; $15 members, students, seniors
The house band of Michigan bluegrass
It’s hard to believe, because each show is fresh and new, but the RFD Boys have been delighting Michigan audiences since 1969 with their fabulous musicianship and sly, exquisitely timed between-song humor. They’re legends of Michigan bluegrass, but they’re more than that too. With an appearance on the cover of Bluegrass Unlimited, with songs recorded by the likes of the Country Gentlemen, and with performances alongside bluegrass greats like Bill Monroe and Ralph Stanley, the RFD Boys are a part of America’s bluegrass tradition. The RFD Boys one of southeastern Michigan’s most durable musical ensembles, and their shows capture a deep slice of musical Ann Arbor. Their 50th-anniversary appearance at the Folk Festival was a special moment and introduced many listeners to Dan Roehrig, who joined the band on guitar, mandolin, and bass in mid-2018. Dan grew up listening to Doc Watson, Clarence White, and Tony Rice, and you can hear it in both his singing and guitar playing.
http://rfdboys.com
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THE BONES OF J.R. JONES
w/sg BENJAMIN DAKOTA ROGERS Sunday, September 10, 2023, 7:30pm Tickets: $20
Moody and ominous new music
“There was no ‘a-ha’ moment,” says Jonathon Linaberry, “no life-changing revelation, no singular flash of inspiration. It was just a fierce, steady, undeniable energy, a force of nature I had to wrestle and wrangle with for years until I could harness it.” It’s easy to understand, then, why Linaberry—better known as The Bones Of J.R. Jones—would call his mesmerizing new album “Slow Lightning.” As its title suggests, the collection is raw and visceral, pulsating with an understated electrical current that flows just beneath its seemingly placid surface. The songs are restless and unsettled here, often grappling with doubt and desire in the face of nature and fate, and frequent collaborator Kiyoshi Matsuyama’s production is eerily hypnotic to match, with haunting synthesizers, vintage drum machines, and ghostly guitars fleshing out Linaberry’s already-cinematic brand of roots noir. The result is a moody, ominous work that’s equal parts Southern Gothic and transcendent meditation, an instinctual slice of piercing self-reflection that hints at everything from Bruce Springsteen
and Bon Iver to James Murphy and J.J. Cale as it searches for meaning and purpose in a world without easy answers. “I felt very lost at the time I was writing these songs,” Linaberry confesses. “It was a moment of deep crisis and anxiety, but I knew the only way out was through, which meant I just had to bring myself to the table every day and put in the work.”
http://thebonesofjrjones.com/
