It’s not often that you get dyed in the wool bluegrass way up in Boston, let alone at the intimate Lizard Lounge in Cambridge. Some people may call that into question, but to me the sonic text of banjo, mandolin/fiddle, upright bass, and guitar is the unmistakable trademark. And of course, three finger picking of banjo provides the backbone. I’ve seen this at a big theater, but at the Lizard Lounge, the dynamic changes are physically palpable.
The band’s lead singer, Dave Wilson may be short in stature, but he’s tall in delivering vocals. He writes beautiful songs that could have been played in a rock band. His voice has shades of Jackson Browne.
Wilson joked that he loved to go to Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift concerts. When he did, he talked about how the crowd would immediately go crazy with the first few notes of their hit songs. And then Wilson mentioned that he wished his hit song was like that. Then the crowd began to cheer and he said, “No wait . . . you have to hear the first few notes.” Then he and the band tore through an intimate version of “Crop Comes In.”
The show featured stellar performances of several other songs from the band’s 2010 release Wildwood. The title track is catchy and merges the best elements of bluegrass and indie songwriting. Other tracks “Ghost of Woody Guthrie” and “Out of the Running” fit neatly in a bluegrass festival and a singer/songwriter coffeehouse. It’s a nice combo.
While bluegrass may be cohesive in pieces (banjo, mandolin, fiddle, bass guitar), it’s also able to take in the best elements of other American music genres. Just like Andrew Zimmern says on deadliest catch, “always have a second bite.” If you happened to catch this as your first experience with bluegrass, you may only need one to be hooked.
The show was highlighted by intimacy and top notch chops. The title track to the band’s album “Wildwood” was a standout as well as “Tightrope of Love” from the band’s latest release “Tightrope.”
Photos by Jeff McMahon
About the author: Jeff is a teacher in the Boston area. When not buried correcting papers, Jeff can be found plucking various stringed instruments and listening to all types of americana music.