blue rodeo   
(CANADA) 22 years and 13 albums with over 4 million sold.   Canada's band of the year on 5 occasions. 24 Juno Award (canadian grammy) nominations, taking home 11 of the awards. The storied catalogue of songwriting talents Jim Cuddy and Greg Keelor rank them among the best songwiters in the country's history (Neil & Joni make for good company). Their debut album in '87, Diamond Mine, immediately established them as harbingers in the alt-country world with their hard rocking, at times psychedelic, bent.  Dig them live in the high desert for this RARE festival appearance in Southern California !

toubab krewe
(ASHEVILLE, NC) Blending Malian, American and "Dirty South" influences into a sound all its own, Toubab Krewe "has set a new standard for fusions of rock 'n' roll and West African music," says Banning Eyre at Afropop Worldwide.  Since forming in 2005, the magnetic instrumental quintet has won a diverse and devoted following at performances everywhere from Bonnaroo, to the JFK Center for the Arts,  to the legendary Festival of the Desert in Essakane, Mali, known as the most remote festival in the world. They developed their unique sound over the course of numerous extended trips to Mali, Guinea, and Ivory Coast, where they immersed themselves in the local culture and studied and performed with luminaries. But the group has its roots in Asheville, NC, where many of its members were childhood friends and long-term musical collaborators. And it was there, at home in the Appalachians, where the band chose to record. Live they whip up a fiery frenzied brew ! Learn more about TK via this article on JAMBASE

the sadies   
(TORONTO) These guys have managed to combine ‘60s country rock and psychedelia, country & western, surf, punk and cosmic American music and transform it into their own unique sound. The Sadies may sound like a lot of things, but no one quite sounds like the Sadies or seems to do it quite so effortlessly. They're at home on any stage, with a typical show lasting 35 to 40 songs (give or take five or ten). The band’s almost careless stage presence — with the Good brothers looming in their tailored, embroidered suits — and reckless punk energy make the songs fly by. Or maybe it’s the way they can stop and start on a dime, going from a cover of Johnny Paycheck’s “I’ve Got Someone to Kill” (which they recorded with R&B legend Andre Williams) to a stunning original rich with guitar textures and gorgeous vocal harmonies, all delivered with the casual ease of lighting another cigarette. Their latest release, New Seasons, is produced by Gary Louris (Jayhawks), and is arguably the purest Sadies release to date.

o'death
(NYC) O’Death’s third LP, "Broken Hymns, Limbs and Skin", feels like a giddy junkyard hoedown, from the panicked fiddle screeches of opener “Lowtide” to the celebratory gallop of closer “Lean-To.” At times it sounds morose or contemplative, but underneath the melancholy is a gospel fervor—bashed from paint buckets, banjos, guitars and anything else in kicking distance—that defines their sound. Since 2007’s buzzed-about Head Home, the quintet, which contains vocalist/guitarist Greg Jamie, vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Gabe Darling, fiddle player Bob Pycior, bassist Newman and drummer David Rogers-Berry, has evolved the possessed americana-meets-gypsy-punk of recent years into a more urgent, unrelenting celebration of life, death and everything in between. This music whips people into a frenzy. It goes beyond toe tapping, demanding concentration to keep the body still.  Perhaps it's not a genre yet, but O'Death is as Appalachian Punk as you can get !

blue mountain  
(OXFORD, MS) Living and playing in Oxford, Mississippi since the late eighties, Blue Mountain has been a part of the same musical confluence that shaped a number of great American musicians, from Elvis to Tammy Wynette to Robert Johnson to Alex Chilton. The five hundred miles from Nashville to New Orleans is a fertile musical crescent with Memphis and North Mississippi firmly in the curve between the Delta and the foothills of Appalachia. Cary Hudson and Laurie Stirratt, who grew up listening to gospel, country and bluegrass, and Frank Coutch, from Utica, which is out from Vicksburg and also firmly in that magical slice of geography, began banging on a Muppets drum kit at five and honed banging skills to Keith Moon, Charlie Watts and the Replacements. They all often heard the late bluesman Son Thomas play around Oxford, and any Sunday night they could drive out to Junior Kimbrough's juke joint in Chulahoma and hear Kimbrough or R.L. Burnside play in their distinctive north Mississippi blues style. It was here, deep in the American South, that Blue Mountain learned how compelling and visceral a live show could be. Hudson and Stirratt created original songs written in a traditional spirit, but with the hard edge of rock 'n' roll.

greensky bluegrass
(KALAMAZOO, MI) GSBG won first place at the Telluride BlueGrass Festival in 2006 for best new band, and have been on a tear ever since.  The current formation is less than a year old, consisting of dobro player Anders Beck, banjo player Mike Bont, guitarist Dave Bruzza, bassist Mike Devol, and mandolin player Paul Hoffman. Greensky distinguishes itself with the double shot of lyrics that lay down the truth and music that makes listeners kick up their heels. As the opening track on Five Interstates, “Old Barns,” suggests—“Old barns, don’t tear ‘em down/Let ‘em stand proud until they fall to the ground”—Greensky will continue to expand while staying rooted in the traditional bluegrass sound its members respect. Increased time on the road will no doubt mean a greater evolution for the young band, and certainly larger numbers of fans nationwide. “Every show is different,” says Bont. “Basically the whole show is improvised.” Good thing they have a solid base of tunes from which to take that leap.

porterdavis
(AUSTIN)  The porterdavis experience is a plate of some slow-cooked musical soul food with a pint of your favorite beverage. This is roots music from the heart, aimed to move the body and soothe the spirit.  Like your favorite watering hole, and your favorite bbq, porterdavis is the place you'll go to get it simple, raw, and feeling alright. Underneath the feel-good grooves, the expressive and honest lyrics, and the smooth 3-part harmonies, their music is founded on a deep appreciation for their musical roots. Before every performance, Dan, Mike, and Simon will toast to the show, and pour a sip on the floor in reverence to the musical heroes who have come before them. Ray Charles, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Elvin Jones, Miles Davis, Townes Van Zandt, Muddy Waters, and Little Walter are all among the names honored each time the guys take the stage.

alela diane
(NEVADA CITY, CA) To Be Still is the follow-up to Alela Diane’s critically-acclaimed 2006 debut The Pirate’s Gospel. That record brought the Nevada city, CA-reared musician a dedicated following across the globe (especially in Europe, where she recently finished a tour of mid-sized concert halls). Considering that early copies of The Pirate’s Gospel were given away to friends in hand-sewn covers just a few years ago, this is not only quite a leap, but a well-deserved one.  Alela says. “I wanted to record this collection of songs using arrangements which represent them in their finest form. These songs requested more instrumental filigree than those on The Pirate’s Gospel. It was challenging to delicately yet purposefully incorporate instrumentation into songs that I was so used to singing by myself. I was determined to make it work, because I wanted percussion! I wanted to hear the lonesome bow of the violin! I heard many harmonies in my head, and so I set out to capture them.

kelly joe phelps
(PORTLAND, OR) Kelly Joe oozes soulfulness and passion created through emotive vocals, visionary lyrics, and stellar guitar work.  “Some of the most emotionally thrilling blues music ever…” Dirty Linen.   “It sounds like Kelly Joe is coming from the inside out; the bottom up. He’s not just playing ’at’ the music or trying to recreate or imitate something that’s happened in the past. He seems to have tapped into the artery somehow. There’s a lot going on in between and behind the notes.” — Bill Frisell. Kelly Joe launched his recording career in his early 30s, after immersing himself in Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and free improvisation and then discovering the blues of Skip James, Robert Pete Williams and Mississippi Fred McDowell.

band of heathens
(AUSTIN)  "With their wealth of wonderful tunes, it's easy to see why Texas music great Ray Wylie Hubbard signed on to produce this fabulous album" No Depression.  "Their music balances between studio slick and devil may care abandon, with equal parts southern rock, 50's R & B, and Louisiana swamp-rock with a punkish swagger. They conjure up a post-modern roots rock...this debut may establish the band as the next big thing from Austin." Vintage Guitar Magazine. "Kinda like if Rimbaud, Keats and Rilke strapped on guitars and hooked up with a bad ass rhythm section....literary and sinfully cool!" Ray Wylie Hubbard. Voted band of the year AND best new band in Austin in 2007. And seriously, Austin has quite a few good bands.....

marianne dissard
(TUCSON) Between Chanson and Americana, Southwestern noir and acoustic French pop, "L'Entredeux" is Marianne Dissard's lush and enchanting debut album. Produced, composed and performed with Calexico's Joey Burns and a stellar group of musicians from both continents. "Marianne weds the cabaret/chanson tradition with Americana. Where such a mix could easily have come across as contrived in someone else's hands, Dissard makes both forms sound like they were meant for each other. French may be the language of love, but the emotional punch of the music comes from Dissard's delivery. So natural is her approach, in fact, that after a short time her French lyrics don't sound novel or even foreign at all. Clearly, Dissard isn't pandering to anyone's yen for exoticism. Instead, she plumbs for the soul of both traditions and re-invents them both."

captain soularcat 
(ROME, GA) "they fit neatly into that funky southern blues rock vein - but their original songs, which would be at home on any Govt. Mule album, are outstanding and set them apart from other similarly accomplished bands" Relix Magazine. Capt. Soularcat is a six piece Rock & Roll band that originated in Rome, GA in August of 2000. With their roots deeply embedded in Blues and Rock & Roll, the combine the old and the new to create an incredibly unique sound, reaching the ears of both young and older audiences. Influences range from the Allman Brothers to John Coltrane, from Carlos Santana to Elmore James, or even the Funky Meters and Paul Simon. They were in Joshua Tree for the fest in 2004, and we are psyched to have them coming back out for more fun and games.

alice di micele
(ASHLAND,OR) " Alice's music has that great combination of earthiness & groove that keeps it funky from the inside out.  She's for real." Bonnie Raitt. Alice's band rocks with the power and subtlety of a flowing river. Top-notch songwriting backed by a strong, sensitive rhythm section creates a concert experience you do not want to miss!"  "Alice has stepped out of the folk world and entered the groove juice with her new band and new songs. Solid, uplifting, danceable rock and roll!" — John Fricker, Producer "Ashland Music Project" "Alice Di Micele's powerful songs and delivery are fully realized by a top-rate band that drives them home and even deeper into our conciousness and culture. Individually the band's members are outstanding. Together with groove-oriented songs and messages, the band is dynamite." — Mike Meyer, Lovelight Productions and KRVM radio, Eugene, OR. If you were at the inaugural JTMF in April, 2003, you will no doubt remember her soulful sunset set as a highlight.

rose's pawn shop
(LA)  With and arsenal of banjos, guitars, mandolin, fiddle, pedal steel, upright bass, and thundering drums, their sound is a wholesome mishmash of creek mud, rusty nails, and your moms cookin’. it’s sincere, straight forward and sexy as f***, effortlessly combining such disparate musical styles as rock, country, bluegrass, and punk to create and incomprehensibly smooth and accessible sound. With wisdom beyond their years, RPS fearlessly confronts traditional country music themes of loss, lamentation, and redemption, while throwing in some drinking songs for good measure. Sure, they are borrowing pages from the books of Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, and Bill Monroe, but Rose’s Pawn Shop tears them up and sets them afire with breakneck speed, bluegrass instrumentation, 3 and 4 part harmonies and lyrics that’ll break your heart.

frontier ruckus
(LANSING, MI) At a young age, the courses of Matthew Milia and David Jones somehow converged within the large and vaguely defined world of Metropolitan Detroit.. And from that point on, with merely a banjo and a guitar, they moved forward towards one common creation—something that reflected the very world from which they came with a zeal and vividness afforded only to the young. The singular vision of Frontier Ruckus that modernly exists, growing fuller each day, is eternally rattling with a youthfulness impossible to shed. Unblinking and ferocious in its expression, it spits out with every gasp dusky images of a landscape to which it is inextricably bound. And now, infinitely bolstered by the trumpet and singing-saw of Zachary Nichols, the harmony of Anna Burch, the percussion of Ryan Etzcorn, and the piano work of Ryan Hay, Frontier Ruckus is perched in waiting, prepared to bring to the greater world a new, hollering, unyielding poetry—the voice of memory, desperate and beautiful; the very face of a confused and dissolving locality that one can remember as home.

deer tick 
(PROVIDENCE, RI) A rock, country, blues, grunge, and cosmic experience. Deer Tick began in December of 2004 in the bedroom of Providence native, John McCauley. With a tape recorder and a nylon string guitar, he did what most anybody would do; he made tapes for his friends.  When McCauley, then 18 years old, got his hands on Hank Williams Sr.'s "Gold" collection and locked himself in his room listening to it on repeat until he finished his bottle of brandy, it all became fairly obvious to him-- he was on his first tour just a few months later. After years of being on the road, fully developing his distinct howl of a voice, and honing his guitar skills, McCauley had earned himself a following of devoted fans and supporters. "The music of Deer Tick is something that should speak for itself. Otherwise, I'm not doing my job very well."  says McCauley.  By the way, the play  like super sweet blues, country, and grunge influenced twangadelica.