This past Wednesday night, I walked into Hook and Ladder, bought myself a beer, and sat down in the front row of a show for Shadowgrass, a bluegrass band I\u2019d never heard of before. Waiting for the show to start, I saw perched upon the old stage a mandolin, a fiddle, an upright bass, and a beautiful old guitar. I didn\u2019t have much of a chance to wonder what the hell was going down in this firehouse, because soon, Shadowgrass, sauntered up on stage, silently picked up their instruments, and then let all hell break loose. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With nary an introduction, Shadowgrass launched into an earth-shattering and jaw-dropping pluck fest. Introduced as the slinger of the six-string steam piano, Kyser George blew the crowd away within the first two minutes of his solo. Fingers flying across the strings so fast you could only catch half the notes, Barker helped Shadowgrass set the mood for the rest of their set. The lack of a drummer\u2013 something that initially took me aback\u2013 was hardly an obstacle, as time was kept with the upright bass. A smile plastered across his face, Shadowgrass\u2019s bassist kept spirits high while everyone else played off one another\u2019s strings. Though the audience was sitting down, it was impossible not to start stomping, tapping, and clapping along with the ferocity of each song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here we take a brief pause for an author\u2019s note. I always struggle with these reviews, because how does one describe music to someone who just wasn\u2019t there? And as I was jotting down notes for this article, one phrase was sprawled across the page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was clear within the first few notes of Shadowgrass\u2019s set that there were similarities between Garcia\u2019s delightfully whimsical bluegrass album that raised me\u2013 featuring mandolin, jaw harps, banjos, and of course, fiddles. So without further ado\u2013 to get a small sense of what I got to experience on Wednesday, tune into \u201cThere Ain\u2019t No Bugs On Me\u201d as you read off the next paragraph<\/p>\n\n\n\n