Last September a devastating “100 Year Flood” about fifty years overdue devastated parts of Colorado, in particular Boulder County. The historic town of Lyons, a beautiful gateway town to Rocky Mountain National Park and precious wilderness was affected worse than most. The St. Vrain River and other waterways turned the town into a riverbed, destroying and displacing many homes and lives. One of the worst hits was the Planet Bluegrass Ranch. Festivarians celebrated their 41^st Rockygrass Festival last summer a little over a month later the property was underwater.

When bands do five-night runs, the first night is usually expected to be, more or less, the warm-up night. Yonder Mountain String Band had no such things in mind as they laid down a blistering show to a packed Boulder Theater on Friday night that set the bar pretty high for the remaining four nights.

Yonder Mountain String Band is thrilled to announce an all-star cast of special guests joining the festivities during their hometown New Year's Eve run at the Boulder Theater. Slide guitar master Roosevelt Collier will bring his 'sacred steel' to the Front Range on December 27th.

Mandolinist, vocalist and songwriter Jeff Austin is joining forces with The Here and Now, featuring banjoist Danny Barnes and Larry & Jenny Keel on guitar and bass for several shows in the MidWest in early March 2014.The tour kicks off at the Cabooze in Minneapolis, before heading over to Milwaukee to the Miramar and then along to Chicago’s City Winery.

Unlike the Martha White “self-rising” flour, it takes more than one ingredient, or individual, to lift the spirits of communities affected by natural disasters. On a brisk night in Boulder, Hot Rize brought together a closely linked ensemble of local musicians to do just that. Recognized as a bluegrass-haven, Boulder County hosts an array of talented musicians.

Thousands of eager fans packed through the doors of the legendary First Avenue Nightclub on a blistering cold October night to see a semi-rare Minneapolis performance from the one and only Yonder Mountain String Band. On a seemingly endless winter tour, the band was supporting the release of their newest album YMSB EP 13’, which features four unique tracks each individually written by one member of the band.

Coming up in January & February 2014, Yonder Mountain String Band heads out on tour in support of their brand new EP, YMSB EP '13 (Frog Pad Records: Oct. 8, 2013), hitting select venues with The Travelin' McCourys in the Deep South, East Coast, and Midwest.

ON October 26^th I got the honor of seeing Yonder Mountain String Band for their Halloween party at the House of Blues in Chicago. It was a beautiful night out in the city. The House of Blues is nestled right downtown among all of the stately buildings and bright city lights. The interior of the building is just as impressive as its stately surroundings. Every wall is painted and decorated differently and the balconies that are stacked three high are decorated with filigree, which is illuminated by color changing lights.  It is truly a beautiful building.

Our final day on the mountain broke with the most gorgeous fall morning – the smell of camp stoves firing up simple breakfasts, the sound of distant birds giddy with the extravagant catch afforded them by the night’s rain, and the sweater-weather wake-up nip of a crisp autumn breeze tousling wet grass and sleepy-head hair all seemed like the sweet morning song of mother nature calling us forward and into the bright world to dance our joy into the soft, wet earth.

Saturday was a wonderful day! It started with sunshine, birds and bluegrass and ended with stars, hippies and bluegrass. The day promised to be a great one just because of the fact it was the last day of the festival. The lineup was just as good as the other days, leaving nobody disappointed. I think the only person who was sad about Saturday was the nearly-legally-blind dude I met this morning who lost his glasses. Bummer.