Casper's Dang Ol' Boys rock Laramie on Border War Weekend

Zak Pullen inks new album cover for John Kirlin & The High Plains Drifters

Latest album cover by the energetic Zak Pullen of Casper. CDs are for sale at Zak's Corridor Art Gallery and Derby Boutique in downtown Casper. The band will be selling them when it plays at the Wonder Bar on Oct. 12 and at Galloways on Oct. 13.

Arts in the Parks: Kane's River at Hot Springs State Park Aug. 23

Our colleagues at Wyoming State Parks and Historic Sites share this news:

Nationally recognized bluegrass band Kane's River will make a rare Wyoming appearance on Thursday, August 23, in Thermopolis. The free performance will be held in Hot Springs State Park Pavilion at 7 p.m.

The Montana-based band is a five-piece acoustic group known for its high-quality harmonies and hard-driving music that appeals to bluegrass, folk and popular music aficionados. It includes founding members John Lowell, guitar, and David Thompson, bass, both from the Bozeman area; Julie Elkins, banjo, former Montana native, now living in Raleigh, North Carolina; Ben Winship, mandolin, Victor, Idaho; and Jason Thomas, fiddle, Orlando, Florida. Sound will be provided by John Brooks.

The performance is a Wildcat Production and is part of the Arts in the Park series. It is sponsored by Hot Springs State Park, Pinnacle Bank, Centennial Energy, Morning Star Oil Company, Jim Boles/BNSF Railway and Hot Springs Greater Learning Foundation. Additional in-kind support comes from Paintbrush Inn, Las Fuentes, Nature's Corner, Black Bear Cafe, Michael & Jacky Wright, KTHE Radio and the Independent-Record.

The group has performed around the United States and Canada at such top festivals as the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Artist Showcase & Fan Fest, Rockygrass, Wintergrass and Winfield.

Songs from the group's two albums reached the top ten on the country’s National Bluegrass Charts. and past performance highlights include the IBMA Artist Showcase & Fan Fest, Rockygrass, Wintergrass, Winfield, and other top festivals and venues around the U.S. and Canada.

FMI: Jacky Wright, Broadway Bygones, 307-864-4070.

Patti Fiasco at Evanston's Beer, Brats and Bluegrass Festival June 23

One Ton Pig brings its Chicken-Fried Prison Music to Laramie Feb. 3

Friday, February 3, 7:30 p.m.

Chicken-Fried-Prison-Music: That's what One Ton Pig is famous for: Fun, down-and-dirty, outlaw-country and bluegrass. If you're into Willie, Waylon, Merle, or Johnny Cash, you're into the Pig!

The band formed in 2006, and is best-known for packing Jackson’s Silver Dollar Bar every Tuesday night. It’s a Jackson Hole tradition, attracting everyone from local politicians to 20-something ski bums!

One Ton Pig has released two CDs (High On the Hog and Big Norm), and they also have a repertoire of over 100 covers.

So grab yourself a whiskey and dance to the Pig!

http://www.onetonpig.net

Tickets are $12 Advance, $15 Door

Beartrap presents "Down from the Mountain"

From the Beartrap Festival web site:

Can’t get enough of that Bluegrass music? Want to keep the good times rolling? Well then come join us downtown at the Attic on Saturday, August 6 for Beartrap "Down from The Mountain." Doors open at 7 p.m. and the music starts at 8.

We’re kicking off our first annual Saturday night show with a sampling of the great lineup we have going on up at Beartrap Meadow. We’ll be starting with everyone’s local favorite The Dang Ol’ Boys (pictured above), to be followed by Boulder Acoustic Society. Our headliner for the evening concert is none other than Reverend Peyton and his Big Damn Band!

Thanks to our sponsor Western Distributing, we’re going to have a microbrew tasting at 7 p.m., then enjoy $2.00 draws all night long!

We would also like to thank 307 Magazine, Wyoming’s premium magazine, for helping us make this event possible.

All the Important Details

Date: August 6^th, 2011

Time: Doors @ 7pm / Music @ 8pm

Ticket Price: $15.00 Ticket

Concert Location:

The Attic

256 South Center Street
Casper, WY 82601-2524

Ticket Purchase Locations:

Townsquare Media

150 Nichols Casper, Wyoming 82601

Sonic Rainbow

140 South Center Street Casper, Wyoming 82601

Music legend Leon Russell performs in Sheridan Aug. 14

On Sunday, Aug. 14, 8 p.m., music legend Leon Russell performs at the WYO Theater in Sheridan. Tickets are $32 for adults, $30 seniors and military and $20 students.

Now's your chance to see the music legend, Leon Russell LIVE at the WYO Theater! You definitely don't want to miss this opportunity experience by perhaps the most accomplished and versatile musician in the history of rock 'n roll. In his distinguished and unique 50 year career, Russell has played on, arranged, written and/or produced pop, rock, blues, country, bluegrass, standards, gospel, and surf records. As a session musician, arranger, producer, singer, songwriter, pianist, guitarist, record company owner, bandleader, and touring musician, he has collaborated with hundreds of artists, including Joe Cocker, Willie Nelson, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Ringo Starr, John Lennon, Bruce Hornsby, B.B. King, Barbra Streisand, Ike & Tina Turner, Herb Alpert, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, Ann-Margret, Dean Martin, Marvin Gaye, Dave Mason, Steve Winwood, and groups such as The Monkees, The Beach Boys, The Byrds, Gary Lewis & The Playboys, Paul Revere & The Raiders, The Rolling Stones, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The Everly Brothers, The Righteous Brothers, and more...He most recently toured and appeared on Saturday Night Live with Elton John. The guy's just plain cool.

FMI: www.leonrussellrecords.com 

Claire Lynch Band headlines BBQ Championship & Bluegrass Festival in Worland Aug. 19-20

The Grammy Award-winning Claire Lynch Band (pictured above) headlines the seventh annual Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championship and Bluegrass Festival August 19-20, 2011, in Worland.

Other performers include Spring Creek, Left Over Biscuits, and the Mountain Holler Bluegrass Band. Also a jam session.

The festival gets under way on Friday, Aug. 19th at 5:30 p.m. For Friday, the festivities end at 10:30 p.m. On Saturday, August 20th, the event is from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Admission is free.

The event includes the Wyoming State BBQ Championship sanctioned by KCBS. Each year 30-plus BBQ cookers come to compete for this year's prizes totaling over $7,275 (plus trophies and ribbons).

FMI: http://wyo-bbq-bluegrass.com/

Crooked Still on stage in Jackson Feb. 23

Crooked Still performs at the Center for the Arts, Center Theater in Jackson on Wednesday, February 23.  The show begins at 7:30 pm with the Random Canyon Growlers: a high-energy, driving bluegrass that draws inspiration from the green rolling hills of Vermont to the jagged and dramatic landscape of the Tetons.
 
Founded in 2001, this unique quintet of vocalist, banjo, bassist, cellist and fiddler is known for its high energy, technical skill, unusual instrumentation and innovative acoustic style. This talented band has taken traditional American roots music and reinvented it with new life and contemporary style.

Purveyors of the nu-folk, bluegrass movement, Crooked Still are equal parts ambassador and innovators as evidenced on their newest release, Some Strange Country. The musical prowess of this defiantly non-traditional bluegrass quintet is on display as radically re-imagined traditional fare blends seamlessly alongside four original compositions and a surprising take on the Rolling Stones’ “You Got The Silver.”

On Some Strange Country, Crooked Still has honed in on their unique refraction of roots music, recording their most personal, visionary album yet. “The music is not just ‘alternative bluegrass’ or whatever people used to call it,” Brittany Haas remarks. “It’s at another level now: artful, but still grounded in that funky, string band thing.”

For tickets, call (307) 733-4900 or go to www.jhcenterforthearts.org.

Bluegrass camps for kids July 6-8 in Buffalo

http://www.bighornmountainfestival.com

Who put the "punch" in Punch Brothers?

Punch Brothers, a band with a style that has been described as introducing bluegrass instrumentation and spontaneity in the structures of modern classical, will perform a free concert Tuesday, Sept. 28, at 8 p.m. in the University of Wyoming College of Arts and Sciences auditorium.

The band is on tour promoting its second CD, "Antifogmatic," an album about the ups and downs of romance and life in the big city.

"We want our music to be something that people can sink their teeth into, if not help make sense of all the various things happening to them," says front man Chris Thile.

After playing at UW, the Punch Brothers are scheduled to perform on the same stage as Elton John, Elvis Costello, Jeff Bridges and many more reputable musicians as they continue to tour the United States.

Individuals with disabilities needing accommodations to participate in this event should contact the UW Campus Activities Center at (307) 766-6340 or sac@uwyo.edu.

Photo: Punch Brothers will perform Tuesday, Sept. 28, at 8 p.m. in the University of Wyoming College of Arts and Sciences auditorium.

Labor-Less Music Fest Sept. 4 in Cody

Miss V the Gypsy Cowbelle called us from the wilds of Cora, Wyoming, with this news:

A new music festival kicks off Labor Day weekend events in Cody Country on Saturday, Sept. 4.

The Labor-Less Music Fest offers music enthusiasts a full day of free music in downtown Cody at the City Park band shell. Entertainment begins at 9 a.m. and continues nonstop until 10 p.m.

The festival highlights local and regional musicians The Paris Family, The Rewinders (Lovell), Samantha Rawlings & Friends, Miss “V” the Gypsy Cowbelle (Cora -- shown in photo), Sage Crik Entourage, and Jeff Troxel & Trevor Kreiger. The day culminates with special guests The Hot Seats, a bluegrass stringband from Richmond, VA (see http://thehotseats.net/ for more information).

Event organizers hope this first-ever event can turn into an annual tradition, capping the busy tourism season and keeping locals and travelers close to town on the holiday weekend.

“Anytime you have local talent and entertainment in Cody you’re going to have an enjoyable time,” shares Samantha Rawlings who will perform acoustic music solo and with a variety of other musician friends at the festival. “It’s great, too, to have it on a holiday when people are still around.”

The City of Cody has offered FREE Summer Concerts in the Park for many years with great attendance and interest from both residents and visitors to our community. This year the concert committee was contacted by several performers from outside the region interested in performing at our City Park venue. The committee decided to expand the concert offerings and musical variety based on that interest.

In addition, the committee applied for funding through the Wyoming Arts Council and was graciously awarded two grants which will help fund the new Labor-Less Music Fest. Other festival sponsors include the Park County Travel Council, Prevention and Wellness Department of West Park Hospital, and many generous local donors. We are very grateful to everyone for their very generous support of live music in our community!

The Cody event committee encourages festival goers to take advantage of other activities in Park County and check out Meeteetse’s 98th Annual Labor Day Celebration. Head to the small burg just south of Cody September 4th through 6th for a street dance, rodeo, parade, Absaroka Mountain Run, and more! Find out why they ARE Meeteetse! Yee Haw! For details, contact the Meeteetse Visitor’s Center at 307-868-2454 or www.meeteetsewy.com.

For more information about the Labor-Less Music Fest or any of the Concerts in the Park series, please contact Amy Quick at 307-587-0400 or amyt@cityofcody.com. You can also visit the City’s website at http://www.cityofcody-wy.gov/ for updates.

Rojos Calientes performs at NIC's Wednesday Night Live

What do you get when you cross bluegrass with Latin rhythms?

Why Latingrass, of course.

With influences bridging both sides of the equator, Rojos Calientes an exciting new sound to Wednesday Night Live outdoors at the Nicolaysen Art Museum in Casper on July 14. The free show begins at 5:30 p.m. and goes until 7:30.

Listen to some of the Colorado group's songs at http://www.myspace.com/rojoscalientes

FMI: 307-235-5247

The Grascals, Anne & Pete Sibley and the Jalan Crossland Band at the Big Horn Mountain Festival July 9-11 in Buffalo

From the Big Horn Mountain Festival web site:

Join us for the 6th Annual Big Horn Mountain Festival on July 9, 10, and 11, 2010, at the Johnson County Fairgrounds in Buffalo. We have a great lineup this year and are looking forward to another great festival with lots of campground and parkin’ lot picken’.

We put together another fantastic line up for this year including The Grascals (shown in photo), The Steep Canyon Rangers, The Wiyos, The Jalan Crossland Band, Anne & Pete Sibley, and D. Michael Thomas. Check out their bios in Bands.

There will be lots of fun in 2010, including the Wyoming Mandolin and Banjo Championships, an Old Time Fiddle Contest, and a Guitar contest too, with the winners of the mandolin, banjo, and fiddle contest all winning guaranteed slots at the Walnut Valley Festival contests in Winfield, Kansas. The Band Scramble will be entertaining as always, and we'll have a variety of workshops hosted by our performers. We'll have some instruments raffled off (including a very nice Weber Gallatin F mandolin), food and craft vendors, a pancake breakfast, great folks, and lots of jamming.

Grand Targhee Bluegrass Festival announces performers

START Bus to shuttle fans from Jackson to "Music on Main" in Victor -- first concert features Jackson bands

JH Underground reported this on June 16:

The START Bus will shuttle people back and forth over the pass during the "Music on Main" concert series that kicks off July 15. The special START service will offer two pick-up times for concert goers coming from Jackson. The ride from Jackson to Victor, where "Music on Main" has been relocated to this year from Driggs, will take about an hour from the first bus stop, at the Snow King Center, and about a half-hour from Wilson, the last stop on the Wyoming side. Riders can take the round-trip ride for $8, or pay $5 for a one-way trip back to the Wyoming side. Shows are scheduled to end by 10 p.m. and a START bus will depart from Victor City Park at 10:10 p.m. The bus will also run the other direction from Victor, shuttling passengers to Driggs, Idaho, and Alta, Wyo.

The Valley Citizen carried this story about the concert line-up:

The series opens on Thursday, July 15 with Calle Mambo and Rotating Superstructure, two of Jackson Hole’s premier local talents.

“Calle Mambo played an opening set last season and was so well received that we simply had to bring them back,” Potter said. “And Rotating Superstructure is one of the youngest bands making waves in the regional scene.”

With any luck at all, the Foundation won’t be able to afford Big Sam’s Funky Nation in the future. Like Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue last year, Big Sam’s Funky Nation is likely to blow its way into the hearts of concert goers Thursday, July 22 after Teton Valley’s own LUNKuR sets the stage.

"Big Sam Williams has long been one of New Orleans’ best trombone players,” Potter said. “After honing his chops with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band for many years, Sam was inspired to form the Funky Nation after Dirty Dozen began touring with Widespread Panic. With upcoming appearances at Bonnaroo, Gathering of the Vibes and Jamcruise, Big Sam’s Funky Nation will bring another set of high energy funk to the Music on Main stage.”

The last Thursday in July will feature the Band of Heathens, an Austin-based Rock/Americana group that has drawn comparisons to the Black Crowes, the Band and Little Feat.

“Following last year’s appearance on Austin City Limits, the Band of Heathens played the Mangy Moose with rave reviews, and they were recently added to this summer’s Lollapalooza festival in Chicago,” Potter said.

Jackson Hole’s One Ton Pig is scheduled to open for the Band of Heathens.

While the band featured on the first Thursday in August is still up in the air, look for the black smoke of the Backyard Tire Fire on August 12. With recent comparisons to Wilco, Son Volt and the Flaming Lips, Backyard Tire Fire has drawn the critical acclaim of Los Lobos’ Steve Berlin, who produced the band’s newest release, “Good to Be."

“It takes a pretty special band to rivet the attention of everyone in my band,” Berlin said. “In my opinion, Backyard Tire Fire is one of America’s best young bands.”

Jackson Hole band the Outfit will open for Backyard Tire Fire.

Two beautiful and talented artists are set to wrap up the 2010 Music on Main series as Carolyn Wonderland and Margo Valiante are set to sing the blues August 19.

Wonderland was named Austin’s Best Female Vocalist and her band the Best Blues Band at the 2009 Austin Music Awards. She has toured with Buddy Guy and John Winter, jammed with Los Lobos and Bob Dylan, recorded with Asleep at the Wheel, and has been featured on Austin City Limits, drawing comparisons to the likes of Bonnie Raitt and Susan Tedeschi.

A Jackson Hole native, Valiante moved to Austin a few years ago and joined Wonderland on the 2010 Austin Music Awards Best Blues Band list. Valiante will join Wonderland again on stage as her opening act. As a volunteer driven organization, the Teton Valley Foundation is always in search of people interested in donating their time to their events and serving on committees. To get more involved, please contact Jeff Potter by emailing him at jeff@tetonvalleyfoundation.org

Call for entries: Targhee Bluegrass Festival Poster Contest

The 23rd annual Targhee Bluegrass Festival announces a poster contest.

Enter by June 15, 2010. Winner will be announced June 16, 2010.

Loot:
Four weekend passes to 23rd Annual Targhee Bluegrass Festival
Two VIP/Backstage passes for the 23rd Annual Targhee Bluegrass Festival
Lodging August 13-15 in a Teton Creek Condominium
Framed poster signed by all artists at 23rd Annual Targhee Bluegrass Festival
Recognition during the festival (on stage)
General glory

Required Elements:
1.Grand Targhee Resort Logo
2.23rd Annual Grand Targhee Bluegrass Festival: must be included in artwork (note: it is acceptable to also use “23rd Annual Bluegrass Festival” as the event titles if it is preceeded by the Grand Targhee Resort logo).
3.August 13 – 15, 2010: Event dates must be included in artwork
4.Names of Artists in Alphabetical Order (may include additional yet-to-be released artists). For the most up to date list click here.
5.Layout to be comprised using the following percentages:
Artwork: 65% of total 11 x 17 space
Artists: 25% of total 11 x 17 space
Space for logos and sponsors: 10% of total 11 x 17 space

Size:
Finished poster should be 11″ wide x 17″ tall OR 11” tall by 17” wide
Max file size for contest submission is 5MB. Submissions must be in either .gif or .jpg format. Actual artwork for poster production has no file size limits, and should be saved in an uncompresssed format. (Native Photoshop or Illustrator is ideal.) All vector and/or raster artwork MUST BE SUBMITTED with layers turned on. PLEASE DO NOT FLATTEN THE ORIGINAL .ai or .psd artwork.

Resolution:
Original artwork should be either vector-based (such as an Adobe Illustrator file) or at least 300dpi if a raster file (such as an Adobe Photoshop file).

Bleeds:
Poster should include a 1/4-inch bleed on all sides. (This means the actual artwork size will be 11.25″x17.25″)

Color:
Artwork should be CMYK.

Logo Usage:
The Grand Targhee Resort logo may be displayed in white or black only. Please do not stretch, twist, invert, or otherwise modify the Grand Targhee Resort logo.

Submissions:
Artwork should be submitted to: mhood@grandtarghee.com. If the file is too large to be submitted via email, please use WeTransfer. Please use “Bluegrass Poster Contest Submission” as your subject line in the email.

Questions:
All questions should be directed to: jurdi@grandtarghee.com

More info at http://www.grandtarghee.com/summer/music-festivals/index.php

Free acoustic workshop with Bearfoot

Alaskan bluegrass band Bearfoot will be conducting a free acoustic workshop on Thursday, Feb. 11, 7 p.m. in the Sublette County Public Library in Pinedale. Open to everyone so bring your guitar, fiddle or mandolin and talk shop with some real pros. If you don't want to participate in the workshop, you can still sit in.

Bearfoot will perform at the Pinedale Auditorium on Friday, Feb. 12, 7 p.m.

FMI: http://www.pinedalefinearts.com/

Anne and Pete Sibley perform this weekend at Pickamania in Silver City, N.M.

Anne and Pete Sibley of Jackson will be one of thirteen musical groups performing this weekend at the second annual Pickamania in Gough Park in Silver City, N.M. Performances begin at 6 p.m. today (Friday) and are free and open to the public.

Here's more from an article in the Silver City Sun-News:

Wyoming's Anne and Pete Sibley were recently awarded top honors in the NPR's Prairie Home Companion Great American Sing-off.

"We are very excited to come to Pickamania," Anne Sibley said. "Neither of us have ever stepped foot in New Mexico before and are excited to have the chance to finally do so. The landscapes are breathtaking around here, Wyoming, Colorado and Utah and now, New Mexico. It seems that lots of people are grateful for life and for the love of music."

The Sibleys will offer the first of three musical workshops throughout the weekend. Workshops will be held in the Wells Fargo Bank. Cost for each workshop is $10.

Anne was awarded a 2009 performing arts fellowship in music performance from the Wyoming Arts Council.

FMI: http://www.scsun-news.com/ci_13304550

Missy Raines & The New Hip in Pinedale 7/17

The Pinedale Fine Arts Council presents Missy Raines & The New Hip at American Legion Park in Pinedale on Friday, July 17, 6:30 p.m. This five-piece ensemble from Nashville bring their "jazz meets rock meets bluegrass sound" to the American Legion Park. Science Rockets to open. This concert is free and open to the public. Go to website or myspace or youtube.