Upcoming Shows
Scrapetown
Scrapetown is the latest band project for brothers John and Billy Parker.
We scraped this all-star crew together for some shows this summer. The band includes Billy on mandolin, John on upright bass, Tyler James on the 5-string, Peter McLaughlin on guitar, and Isaac Callender on fiddle. We will do some originals written by Peter, Isaac, and Billy, some bluegrass standards, and some more obscure songs, usually on the theme of the land and the people who work it. We are also hoping to have an original tune about the Wyoming State BBQ Championship and Bluegrass Festival!
The band has a couple hundred years of experience (but don’t hold it against us) and we are looking forward to playing with old friends in a new arrangement.
This will be a live rehersal for a festival this weekend in Wyoming.
https://www.randalbays.com/
Waters and Bays Irish Fiddles, with Clint Dye guitar
Randal Bays is well-known on both sides of the Atlantic for his Clare/Galway style of fiddling. He’s toured and recorded over the years with such great musicians as Martin Hayes, James Keane, Daithí Sproule, James Kelly and many more. In 2021 Randal received the Irish Artist in America Achievement Award from O’Flaherty Irish Music. He lives in the Pacific Northwest and is Artistic Director of Cascadia Irish Music Week. Besides the fiddle, Randal is highly regarded for his fingerstyle guitar playing, including two seminal albums with Irish fiddler Martin Hayes in the early 90s.
“Randal Bays is one of the finest Irish fiddlers one could ever hope to hear.” – Fiddler Magazine
“Bays is a rare beast, a true master of both the fiddle and guitar.” Cork Examiner (Ireland)
Susan Waters, fiddle and vocals Susan is a native of Vermont, where she grew up in the midst of a musical family, immersed in the instrumental and song traditions of that part of the world. As a teen she traveled widely in Europe, took up the Irish fiddle and developed a strong, rhythmic style on her many trips to western Ireland. Susan met Randal in the late 90s and they’ve been playing tunes together ever since, finding time along the way to get married and raise two sons, both fine musicians themselves.
Guitarist Clint Dye arrived in Seattle from the east coast a few years ago and his great musicality and style have made him very welcome in sessions and concerts around the Northwest. Clint got his start playing traditional Irish music by accompanying dancers and singers in the Busch Gardens show Celtic Fyre in Williamsburg, VA. Since moving to the Northwest he’s worked with several bands and has been in great demand for sessions and concerts.
Kenen Flannery
“The Essence of Folk Music in its rawest and most Authentic form”
Praised for writing “bone-breakingly beautiful” music. Kenan Flannery is a 25-year-old IYMA’s award-winning folk songwriter from Dublin, Ireland. Kenan at his core is a storyteller for the damned and broken, writing heart-wrenching songs and stories with a voice “that hits you with the intensity of a hundred Irish poets and musicians”. He mixes his upbringing of Irish folk/ballad music from the likes of The Dubliners with his love of American folk music and has been compared to the likes of John Prine, Townes Van Zandt and Blaze Foley.
In 2022 Kenan graced the stages of some of the biggest venues in Ireland over the years including The National Stadium and the famous Ruby Sessions, which has seen artists like Frank Turner, Damien Rice, and Ed Sheeran, amongst many more. In addition, Kenan got to support The Wolfe Tones in front of 2000 people and Gravedancer on his debut tour of Ireland.
In 2023 he performed on the stage of Electric Picnic and The Secret Song in West Cork, sharing a stage with the likes of Lisa Hannigan, Junior Brother, Ye Vagabonds and Lemoncello.
In 2024 Kenan embarked on his debut European tour across 8 countries and was featured on festival line ups with the likes of Lightin’ Luke, Possessed by Paul James and Pat Reedy. His shows have been praised for being one of a kind, packed with stories and songs that will have you laughing, crying, singing and dancing.
Recently, Kenan has released his first ever live album titled “Live at Whelan’s, Dublin, Ireland” recorded during his sold out live show in Dublin. With plenty of new music and more national and European shows in the pipeline, Kenan Flannery has made a name for himself as one of the most unique performers and storytellers in the international folk scene today and one to keep an eye on.
Praise for Riddy Arman’s Debut
“The resolve in Arman’s vocals recalls icons like Johnny Cash or Dolly Parton—both strong songwriters who were able to distill a sense of melancholy, romance, and sincerity in the necessary hurt of being human.”FLOOD MAGAZINE
“When you know, you know. In a genre that places so much emphasis on authenticity — and all the fraught debates that brings — when you hear Riddy Arman’s life-weary voice, you know she’s the real deal.”
NO DEPRESSION
“Riddy Arman evokes the late, great Glen Campbell with ‘Too Late to Write a Love Song’…The music swells around her with grandeur, and a chorus of voices backs her up, but Arman cuts through it all with the lonesome tear in her voice.”
Please come and see Old Man Ben (who doesn’t look so old to me) for songs, stories, and almost-cowboy-poetry on October 17th.
Ben Larson is a working musician, poet, historian and carpenter from Philipsburg, Montana. He developed his storyteller ways over years of hitchhiking and wandering with his guitar and tape measure from Australia to Newfoundland and a thousand places in between. He lives in a handbuilt homestead with his public school teacher wife and two cowdogs, where he alternates his days between carpentry and weaving his observations into gruff newspaper columns and eclectic, yet deeply poetic songs.
Ben is a student of Montana history. His performances are filled with tales of real life in rural Montana, ghosts of the past and wry words of wisdom compiled over years of living outside and working with his hands. From renovating an old saloon in the ghost town of Hasmark to revitalizing old Mining Songs with the Clark Chateau non-profit in Butte, to seeking out the lost homesteads of his wife’s pioneer parents on the east side of the state, Ben’s storytelling mediums span all geographic areas and aspects of Montana living. Out of those experiences, Ben crafted a ninety minute compilation of original songs and poems, historic anecdotes and stories.
From Hobson to Scobey, Wibaux to Darby, Ben has performed in over 100 Montana towns and cities. Several albums of his music can be found on all streaming services, including his most recent release “New Tales From Old Montana.” In support of his Montana Living History show, Ben’s on a musical mission to bring his stories to all 56 counties of Montana; 41 down, 15 to go!
Short Bio for Jacob Jolli
Jacob Jolliff is one of the world’s premier contemporary mandolinists. In 2011
he graduated from Berklee College of Music, having studied there on a full
scholarship. The following year, in 2012, he won the USA’s National Mandolin
Championship in Winfield, KS. A fixture of the bluegrass scene, he
performed and collaborated with Béla Fleck, Tony Trischka, Michael Daves,
Grant Gordy, Wes Corbett, and Alex Hargreaves, to name a few. Additionally,
throughout his 20s, he toured as a member of the groups Joy Kills Sorrow and
Yonder Mountain String Band. Currently, his focus is on his own ensemble, The
Jacob Jolliff Band—one of the most cutting-edge progressive bluegrass group
on the scene today. They’ve released three albums, the most recent of which,
“Instrumentals, Vol. 2: Mandolin Mysteries,” dropped in May 2024. The band
plays a combination of complex original instrumental music and vocal repertoire
that spans from trad bluegrass to unlikely pop covers. Improvisation and the
ensemble interplay are at the forefront
SHOWMAN AND COOLE
SUPER-DELUXE FIDDLE, BANJO, AND SONG
Through twenty years and a couple of thousand shows together in bands such as The Foggy Hogtown Boys and The Lonesome Ace Stringband, John Showman and Chris Coole have developed a deep and instinctual musical bond. Their music lurks in a truly unique space that is somewhere on the outskirts of old-time, bluegrass, and folk. The songs of John Hartford, Hank Williams, Dock Boggs, and The Band share space with the fiddle tunes of Eck Robertson and Ed Haley. The duo’s original songs and tunes take in all these vistas and paint something both personal and timely.
They have performed across North America and Europe at festivals such as Merlefest, Rockygrass, Winnipeg Folk Festival, Mariposa, Wintergrass, Gooikroots, and The John Hartford Memorial Festival. In 2022, the duo released two albums; “ Afield” a collection of old-time fiddle tunes, and “Much Further Out than Inevitable – A Tribute to Some Music of John Hartford.”
“John Showman has made his mark as “one of the very best and most influential fiddle players in Canada” (Steve Pritchard, CIUT 89.5 FM).
“Renowned for his clawhammer banjo picking, Coole now establishes himself as a gripping songwriter.”
(Roddy Campbell, Penguin Eggs Magazine)
Yahoo, they are back again. In case you didn’t know, read this;
Dust off your boots and gather around for some true and original modern honky tonk music. An all-star cast of master musicians backs these two soul singers of country music, Caleb Klauder and Reeb Willms. These two are known to roots music fans across the globe for their soulful harmonies, driving dance tunes, classic original songs, and commitment to the raw truth of rural American music. They live in the San Juan Islands of Washington, though until recently, home was Portland, OR. They are foundational to the exceptional old-time and country music scene in the Pacific NW with the Caleb Klauder Reeb Willms Country Band and their membership in the Foghorn Stringband, of which Caleb was a founding member. Charismatic performers, they bring their unique set of talents to the stage with an eye towards good times and an ear towards the deepest songs and tunes.
Caleb Klauder and Reeb Willms both originally hail from Washington State: Caleb from the coastal islands, and Reeb from the high desert plateau. The two have come together in music and are hailed as some of the most compelling musicians making country roots music in America today. When these two sing together, their honest incantations leave us spell-bound and smiling.
Their repertoire is made up of original songs and tunes as well as gems from American roots repertoires, and the music they make is Americana in the truest sense of the word. Music is clearly in their blood. Caleb and Reeb’s originals and interpretations of songs have been covered and recorded by many performers and their musical presence reaches into a diverse and loyal fanbase, giving credence to the impact that this duo has on their listeners. Pillars of the Northwest music scene, they carry the torch of their music around the world, and can be found touring as a duo, as well as with the Foghorn Stringband, and the Caleb Klauder Country Band. Their fans exude admiration for the timeless sound that these two produce, capturing the essence of American roots music.
Sometimes we get so unnecessarily swept up in who’s rising and falling in music these days that the sheer joy of music is overlooked. One of the great things about Caleb and Reeb is that they are a world apart from all of that nonsense and let you immerse yourself in the melody and story of classic sounding country music until all other cares of life fade away. Country music is the music of working people who use it to pass the time and forget about the ever-present hardships in their lives. After years of touring together, Reeb and Caleb work intuitively.
Caleb’s study and understanding of roots music is so dedicated and rich, that he can hauntingly immerse himself in the same perspective of those old primitive country composers and write as if he was right beside them. Their album Innocent Road includes a clutch of lovingly arranged Klauder originals, along with well-placed and rare covers. The pair bring the spirit of legendary country duos into their contemporary takes on country music. Trading vocals back and forth, they complement each other strikingly well in an attractive meld of honky-tonk that brushes shoulders with trad bluegrass. Caleb has penned over 50 songs many of which are standards across America in honky tonk and bluegrass jams and festivals, both on and off stage. There is a long list of bands and singers who have recorded Caleb’s songs over the years.
The blend of true harmonies, the sharply-written country songs, and the un-showy authenticity strike a rich vein that makes them seem like they are born and raised in Music City. They quietly pursue a musical vision without much of a care for what’s expected or in vogue at the time. There’s a lot to admire in this singular perseverance and honesty.
VIDEOS:
https://www.calebklauder.com/home
https://www.facebook.com/calebklauderband
https://www.instagram.com/calebklauder
Fresh off a first place win at the 2025 Telluride Bluegrass Festival band competition, Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light have been captivating audiences throughout the northeast. With songs as sweet and biting as the nectar and venom in her voice, Sumner’s lyric-forward writing and penchant for snaking chord progressions demand something far beyond folk conventions, highlighting the acrobatic range of her brilliant bandmates Kat Wallace (fiddle) and Mike Siegel (upright bass).
Sumner is no stranger to the stage. She spent her early career on the bluegrass circuit, singing and writing with the genre-bending roots group Twisted Pine. Since setting out on her own, Sumner’s songs have been critically acclaimed: winning the 2021 John Lennon Award in the folk category for her song “Radium Girls (Curie Eleison);” earning a spot in the Kerrville New Folk Competition; and being chosen four consecutive years as one of the top Massachusetts entries in NPR’s Tiny Desk Competition. Rachel Sumner & Traveling Light released their debut LP in the summer of 2022 to critical acclaim.