What is bluegrass? Is it the strictly dictated by the legacy of Bill Monroe? Is it constructed by the lead guitar flat-pick licks of Tony Rice, Norman Blake, or Charles Sawtelle? Is it held by the torch of the current up-and-up popularity that the genre is experiencing?

After 17 years pursuing other passions, Hairball Willie is reuniting for a weekend of shows on May 18th & 19th, 2012.  The first show will be in the ‘burbs on Friday at Two Brothers Roundhouse in Aurora, IL and the second is at Martyr’s in Chicago.  The band’s full length studio album Just Defying Gravity was released in 1993 and since then, the members have defied gravity in their own

Nestled high in the foot hills of the Poudre Canyon, the legendary Mishawaka Amphitheatre rests on the rocky banks of the Cache de la Poudre River. For the past 8 years, the Mish has served as the spring stopping ground for Ft. Collins’ favorite sons. And once again, this Saturday, May 12th, opening weekend arrived. It was time to Head for the Hills.

The good folks at the Hi-Dive in on Broadway treated Denverites to a line-up of great music last night. On the bill were three relatively new groups, all having been founded after 2009. More than worth the ten bucks to get in the door! Once inside, we were greeted by the creative sampling sounds of Young Man. This signaled the start of rocking.

Boulder was rocked off its ass this week when Social Distortion came through town, bringing with them their infamous brand of rockabilly a la punk rock. Frontman Mike Ness and crew were on hand to deliver the Social D experience, greatest hits and then some.

Yarn is a true workhorse of a band. The Brooklyn, NY outfit plays an average of 200 shows a year and their cohesion as a band is tried and true. On Friday, they brought their alt-country/bluegrass blend to Quixotes in Denver for a two-night run of outdoor performances.

As the bartender made his last call, Todd Snider knew his evening with his hero Jerry Jeff Walker was coming to a close. They finished their drinks and slipped out the exit into a still dark night. It was the hour in which a busy city was fast asleep and only the air made a noise. Together they began to tiptoe down lonely city blocks until they heard the strings of an acoustic guitar... 

Two and a half months ago, I was fortunate enough to get my first glimpse of Elephant Revival, the Lyons band whose sound is so unique, a reporter coined the term “Transcendental Folk” in an effort to capture it.

Keller Williams is an artist that is hard to put your finger on.With a career's worth of music ranging from electronica to children's music and everything in between, it is easy to see that there is more going on in this guitar-vituoso's head than one can expect from an entire band.

“It’s like déjà vu all over again.” – Yogi Berra