Mandolin Overload!
Tickets: $12 advance, $16 at the door.
Sorry, this show is completely sold out! No tickets will be released at the door.
Please join us for this special double bill of groundbreaking instrumental music! Mandolin duo Michael Connolly & Miller McNay will release their brand-new studio album The Mandolin Casefiles, and upright/mandolin duo bass+mandolin will share their original works with a Seattle audience for the first time.
Michael Connolly & Miller McNay: The Northwest’s premier mandolin duo
Playing their mandolins together for more than five years, Michael Connolly and Miller McNay have traveled along and across genre boundaries, from bluegrass to old-time to swing. In their inaugural album celebrating the unusual pairing of two mandolins, Connolly and McNay share the sound they’ve developed as a duo: transparent and open, but warm, varied, and eminently listenable.
In The Mandolin Casefiles: It Takes Two To Mando, Connolly and McNay offer up a mix of traditionaltunes, covers, and originals like McNay’s “The Grapes of Rag,” which introduces the disc, and Connolly’s “Mr. Pick’s Blues,” a chromatic, colorful adventure in 12/8. A vintage Gibson mandola makes an appearance on “Over The Waterfall” and on the duo’s cover of Lennon and McCartney’s “In My Life.” Exhibiting an unparalleled responsiveness to each others’ playing, the musicians slip effortlessly between lead, accompaniment, and even percussive roles.
Recorded live in the studio with no overdubs, The Mandolin Casefiles captures the palpable energy and moment-by-moment musical dialogue between two longstanding collaborators at play.
Michael Connolly’s love affair with the mandolin began at age six. During his musically charged upbringing in Memphis, Tennessee, he delved deeply into bluegrass, old-time, Irish traditional, blues, and swing music. The result is a unique “hornlike” approach to the instrument. His deft ear and sensitive accompaniment have won him appearances touring with and performing alongside Michelle Shocked, Coyote Grace, and The Indigo Girls.
An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, Connolly performs regularly on fiddle, piano, and accordion as well as maintaining a busy teaching schedule. He has recorded widely, appearing on nineteen albums. The Mandolin Casefiles is the twelfth to feature his mandolin playing.
Miller McNay’s mandolin story began in his native Charlotte, North Carolina. Winner of the Grand Targhee Bluegrass Festival’s mandolin contest, he has played with Free Roaming Buffalo Herd,and Barnyard Stompand as a founding member of Captain Gravel.
McNay’s impeccable tone and rhythmic drive have led to his sharing the stage with Joe Craven, G-Love & Special Sauce, and Ben Winship as well as opening for Tim O’ Brien, Danny Barnes, and The Wilders.
bass+mandolin: Original music for mandolin & upright bass
As acoustic musicians go these days, Brian Oberlin (mandolin) and Josh Feinberg (upright bass) have a chemistry like no other. They have only been playing together for a single year, yet each concert is full of new ideas as they spring and lope through songs, bouncing off each others nuances with a lively thrill. Their repertoire is mostly original music written particularly for mandolin and bass. The few covers they play are arranged tightly for the duo across the genres, new acoustic, swing, jazz, and classical. The sound of mandolin and bass, being at opposite ends of the musical note spectrum, balance and complement each other while Brian digs from his bluegrass and swing background and Josh feeds from his classical, jazz, and Indian music background.
Brian Oberlin, originally from Rockford, MI., spends much of his time teaching mandolin and his own mandolin camp in Portland, OR. (River of the West Mandolin Camp) He also performs as a solo act around the pacific northwest playing anything from Vivaldi’s mandolin concertos with an orchestra, to performing western swing music at festivals and concerts. He also has started the Oregon Mandolin Orchestra which has 25 members all in the mandolin family playing American and European music. His wide variety of styles on mandolin and crooning voice add a perfect fit to the sound of Bass Mandolin. Brian was a finalist at the 2003 Winfield mandolin championship and a member of the award winning band, Grasshoppah.
Josh Feinberg was introduced to music through piano at age 4. He switched to the upright and electric bass at 8. He was soon playing in state orchestras and prestigious youth symphonies across the North East performing at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, Hofstra University and Queens College’s LeFrak Hall. Many of these were as principal bass for the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra- in which capacity he also appeared on television at a live concert celebrating Martin Luther King Day in Albany. In the 2000 NYSMA competition, he scored the highest marks in the eastern United States for his jazz bass playing. In 2002, he entered the New England Conservatory of Music where he was granted two merit-based scholarships. Josh is a 2006-07 Fulbright Scholar to India where he spent 9 months studying North Indian Classical Music in Kolkata. Josh also studies sitar, and receives training from Maestro Ali Akbar Khan.
Brownesville Highway – CD Release Party
Tickets: $10 advance, $14 at the door.
Click here to purchase advance tickets.
Please join us as we celebrate the release of Brownesville Highway’s inaugural studio album, recorded here at Empty Sea.
Georgia Browne, previously with the acclaimed a cappella trio, Bella, and Americana group Chele’s Kitchen, has played a variety of festivals and such venues as the Triple Door and the Intiman Theater. While Georgia’s songwriting comes from a deeply personal space, her lyrics are easily accessible and universally understood. With her soulful, heartfelt delivery, Georgia’s songs are evocative and unforgettable.
Rob Gilbert, a cartoonist and animator by trade, has followed a long-time interest in music that began in bars and dives in New York City playing in rock/blues/funk bands. Over a decade ago, he eschewed electric instruments and has developed a passion for acoustic music. Influenced by a variety of styles including old-time county, classical, jazz, and Appalachian mountain music, he pulls from his Southern American and Eastern European ancestral roots to write diverse songs which are at once fresh and timeless.
“It’s been quite a wonderful and amazing experience to see our two styles blending and creating something new, musically.” Georgia explains, “We’ve been playing together for about a year now, and the songs we write together are reflective of our individuality, but take on a crazy life of their own.” The pair switch instruments continuously, keeping things interesting using various pairings of voice, guitar, banjos, mandolin, mandola, mountain dulcimers, and upright bass. “We’re constantly learning and reinventing ourselves, and try not to take things too seriously,” says Gilbert.
MaMuse
Tickets: $14 advance, $18 at the door
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MaMuse: (Ma as in Mamma; Muse as in the one who inspires) “Beautiful Harmonies woven into a tapestry of strings and stillness.”
The songs of MaMuse are love poems to the Earth. They also speak to the depths of one’s own inner terrain. MaMusic stirs the heart through deep soul felt lyrics and sparse supportive instrumentation. Sarah and Karisha together create original music that breathes. Tight vocal harmonies ring out a Capella or blend with upright bass, mandolin, guitar, flute, light percussion and finger snaps to deliver the gift of joyful truth telling.
The encouragement and support of their hometown Chico, California community (MaMuse has received awards two years in a row from local voting music enthusiasts for Best New Act, Best Folk Act and Best Local Act) has provided the strength for the “rootsy female wonder duo” of MaMuse to make her way out into the world, touring regions across the country as well as establishing a strong presence through the Bay Area and Northern California.
Celebrating her second year of Being and sharing, MaMuse delights in this year’s 2010 Spring and Summer invitations: Chico Bicycle Music Festival, Davis Whole Earth Festival, California World Music Festival, Esalen International Arts Festival, Kate Wolf Memorial Music Festival, Mystic Family Garden Party and the American River Music Festival.
Beginning July 31st, MaMuse will set out with the support of friends to promote their second full-length album Strange and Wonderful. The tour will begin in Shasta, CA and meander northward through Oregon and Washington. In Seattle, MaMuse will continue their adventurous Northwest tour by bicycle, ferrying across the Puget Sound and sharing their music through the San Juan Islands. Bicylces support the journey for MaMuse whenever possible, as they have pedaled their bodies and instruments from their homes in Chico to the World Music Festival (Grass Valley, CA), the Whole Earth Festival (Davis, CA) and the Bicycle Music Festival (San Francisco, CA).
The essence of MaMuse is rooted in the transparency of a journey shared by two women who feel a lot and dare to express their experiences through song and story. ”As a community we are all strengthened when even one of us discovers his or her voice and dares to share. We dare you to sing with us. We dare you to discover your own song.” (Karisha)
“Mamuse is what a meadow would sound like if it could sing.”
The Honeycutters
Tickets: $13 advance, $15 at the door.
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The Honeycutters are singer/songwriter Amanda Anne Platt and guitarist/ producer Peter James. While their sound has drawn comparisons to such artists as Graham Parsons and Emmylou Harris or Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Platt and James produce a refreshingly unique blend of Americana music that is comfortingly familiar while being entirely original. Ω
Their first full length studio release Irene (May 2009) was recorded at Asheville’s own Collapseable Studio, and mixed by Grammy Award winning sound engineer David Fergason ( Nashville TN ) . The album has garnered radio support across the USA as well as overseas, and landed them in Iaan Hughes’ (No Depression Podcast) top twenty of 2009, Fret Knot Radio Hour’s “Nine to Know from ’09″, and as number 32 in WNCW’s listener voted top 100.
Amanda Anne Platt has been hailed as “one of the best songwriters coming out of WNC these days” by WNCW programming director Martin Anderson, and her voice has been described as “perfectly unadorned” and “recklessly beautiful”. Her lyrics are as catchy and heartbreaking as her melodies. Dane Smith of Asheville NC’s Mountain Xpress writes “Her songs make you sad…in a good way!” In both her simple composition and honest delivery it’s easy to hear the influence of country legends such as Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, or Loretta Lynn, and with this Miss Platt credits growing up listening to her Father’s extensive record collection every Saturday morning. Despite her love for classic country, she cites Bruce Springstein as one of her biggest influences and her songwriting carries a wit and an edge that plants her firmly in her generation.
Peter James is rapidly becoming one of Western North Carolina’s most sought after guitar players, known for both insightful solos and tasteful accompaniment. Having first held a guitar at age thirteen, he quickly started making up for lost time by delving completely into the instrument. His natural talent and attention to detail made him an asset to The Slant Six Cowboys, a New Hampshire based group founded by James and singer/songwriter Don Witcher out of their long time musical collaboration. In 2004 they released a self-titled album on 95 North records which reached number 14 on the AMA chart. Since moving to Asheville in 2006 James has played right-hand man to several of the region’s top acts, including Taylor Martin and Brian McGee.
Like so many of country music’s great duos, Platt and James have a musical chemistry that can be felt throughout the songs they play, from the sounds of their guitars to their vocal harmonies. Perhaps this is why they are frequently mentioned along with the movement to “Take country music back to it’s roots”. The Honeycutters are just doing what they know how to do: making music that feels as good to hear as it does to play. Their original brand of Americana has proven equally appealing to both the musician and the music lover, the country and the city, and the old and the young.
“If anyone can make this old metalhead want to whip out the cowboy boots and hat, order a couple of Budweisers and spin my woman around the dance floor, the Honeycutters can.” -Brent Fleury, Bold Life Magazine
“Old school country in the truest sense, “Irene” is free of twang and ten-gallon hats but full of real emotion, family history, quick wit and strong liquor.” -Ali Marshall, Arts and Entertainment, Mt Xpress
“Amanda Anne Platt is easily one of the best songwriters coming out of Western NC these days, and she really needs to be discovered by the national Americana world. Her moving delivery, accompanied by Pete James’ tasteful guitar work and harmonies, make The Honeycutters an act that really should not be missed. We can’t stop playing their CD “Irene” here at WNCW!” – Martin Anderson, Music Director WNCW
Coyote Grace – Double Header
Tickets: $10.00 advance, $12.00 at the door
Click here to purchase advance tickets for either date.
Coyote Grace was the first group to grace the Empty Sea stage when we opened this May. Now they’re back for two consecutive nights: Friday, September 4th and Saturday, September 5th. Both are at 8.00 PM.
Coyote Grace
Girl meets Girl. Girl becomes Boy.
Girl and Boy become a band.
Meet COYOTE GRACE.
If you want a lesson in organic chemistry, take notes as you watch the sparks fly between the acoustic downhome duo, COYOTE GRACE. This folktastic phenomenon is the result of combining one guitarist Joe Stevens, a transman from Northern California, with one upright bassist Ingrid Elizabeth, a sassy femme originally hailing from the hills of Southeastern Ohio. Together, they capture the eyes and the hearts of live audiences nationwide with their bluesy folkgrass sound, sweet harmonies, poignant songwriting, and mid-song dance moves.
Coyote Grace has shared the stage with such folk icons as Indigo Girls, Melissa Ferrick, Cris Williamson, and Lowen & Navarro. They can also be found wooing the crowds at colleges, festivals, conferences, coffeehouses, pubs, house concerts, farmers markets, and community centers alike. Although they spend most of the year on the road, the duo now resides in Sonoma County, California.
Spring 2009 brings the release of Ear to the Ground, the duo’s long-awaited sophomore studio album. In this latest evolution of their unique Americana/roots sound, Coyote Grace displays a striking musical maturation from their debut effort, filling out the duo’s sound with guest musicians on fiddle, mandolin, guitar, keys, and drums. Ingrid Elizabeth shows a stronger songwriting & vocal presence, while Joe Stevens continues to wear his heart on his sleeve with his emotionally charged, raw lyrics. The album’s mood ebbs and flows, winding from a sparse banjo/vocal duet, through a slow bluegrass ballad, to blues-driven full band sound to swinging country fiddle tune to pensive piano-kissed lullabye — a soundscape as tangible as the duo’s newfound home in the rolling hills of Sonoma County.
The two met while living in Seattle, and have been performing as a duo since December 2004, sharing the stage with bluegrass, old-time, folk rock, jazz, and cabarets alike. Coyote Grace spent the entire year of 2007 touring the country in their 1978 Chevy RV (Harvey), promoting their debut studio album, Boxes & Bags. Aptly titled, the album pays homage to the trademarks of their nomadic troubadour lifestyle, featuring 12 original tracks of acoustic alt-folk sounds, weaving fabrics of upbeat folkgrass, front-porch blues, lovesick serenades, broody funk, and freight train folk rock into a curious tapestry conveying themes of transformation, introspection, and the impermanence of identity.
Al and Emily Cantrell In Concert
Tickets: $14 ($12 for SFS and PNA members)
Make reservations at 206-528-8523 or online at www.seafolklore.org
It’s a pleasure to team up with the Seattle Folklore Society to present Al and Emily Cantrell.
Al and Emily Cantrell
Al and Emily Cantrell cast a magical spell with their airy, joyful acoustic songs. Emily uses her voice as an instrument on soaring vocals like a country Joni Mitchell, while Al plays spirited fiddling and dazzling mandolin. Currently based in Nashville, the Cantrells have been touring and playing their original folk and bluegrass music in concerts and festivals since 1985. Their performances feature Emily’s songs, and Al’s contest-winning fiddling in traditional, swing and Irish styles, their duet harmonies, ”fiddlesticks” (“playing the straws”) and the wide variety of cover tunes from traditional bluegrass to Broadway musicals.
They have recorded four CDs of mostly original songs featuring Jerry Douglas, Bela Fleck, Ranger Doug and Too Slim from “Riders in the Sky”, Jim Hurst, Rob Ickes, Tim O’Brien and Mark Schatz of “Nickel Creek”.
For several seasons the Cantrells taught swing guitar and fiddle at Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch. They will also be presenting swing guitar and fiddle workshops Sunday, May 10 at Dusty Strings.
Come hear the magic of this special Seattle Folklore Society concert.
Make your reservations by telephone, 206-528-8523 or online at www.seafolklore.org
