Friday, March 6, 2009

The February Whirlwind

The February Whirlwind

Hey Yall,

We just rolled home from about 2 1/2 weeks out on the road, and wanna say hey to all the folks we met while we were gone. It was great to see family and friends everywhere we went. We can't tell you how it feels to roll in from an 8 hour drive and be greeted by the warmth of the people we know. Thanks to Missy and Jim and all the families in Lexington,KY who open up their homes to us. Of course, it was wonderful to go "home" to Spartanburg, SC for a few days. Just in case you don't know, Jeff, Rob and Marshall grew up there, and the community supports them so fully that they have taken the rest of us in and Spartanburg has become a second home for us, too! Thanks to Shane Pruit for all the jams. Here's a link to a blog written about the show in Spartanburg,SC by Dan Armonaitis:
http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=377773638&blogID=470729420

Another great part of the last tour was the Folk Alliance. If you don't know, the Folk Alliance is a conference where a bunch of musicians get together with a bunch of people in the folk business commuinty and cross pollinate for a weekend. It is always a blast for the musicians because we get to see our friends from around the country/world who are doing exactly the same thing as us and exchange stories/songs etc. into the wee hours of the morning. Since we were only there for the friday night of the conference, we took full advantage of the evening. The one night we were there, got to hang with the guys in The Boulder Acoustic Society, check out The Duhks, and even see tons of our friends from Austin including Dustin Welch and The Marshal Ford Swing Band. It was really an honor to have Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn sitting and watching our showcase in our friend Greg Liszt's showcase room. I am still amazed to look back and think of all that happening in one night.

The last night of the tour was the show in Charleston, WV on the Mountain Stage. What a highlight! If you are unfamiliar with Mountain Stage, you should know about it. Mountain Stage is a nationally syndicated radio show that gets recorded twice a month or so in front of a live audience in Charleston, WV. They always have a great line up of bands, and the week we were there was no acception. We got to play with a fun cast of characters, including Sometymes Why, The Spring Standards, Steve Poltz and The Drive By Truckers. Truly inspirational to see such amazing music in one night!

Meanwhile, Rob and Jeff have been working hard on finalizing all the details for the festival that they are throwing just outside of Spartanburg, SC on June 19th and 20th, The Music Camp. Stay tuned for the launch of the website, including the exciting line up of amazing bands! All that work combined with us getting the details on our new record out has made the van into an office on wheels. Except maybe a bit more fun!

Well, off to get ready for the show tonight at Momo's in Austin. Hope to see you there!

-Phoebes