Grand Rapids progressive bluegrass band Fauxgrass unveiled a new original and a new cover in the studio for Local Spins, which also debuted new music by The Accidentals and others.
New Album in the Works: Fauxgrass in Studio X for Local Spins on WYCE.
Over the years, Fauxgrass has come full circle as a progressive bluegrass band.
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The core of the group — with Jason Wheeler on mandolin, Tim McKay on upright bass and Adam Balcer on acoustic guitar — started with a resonator guitar in the mix, switched to a banjo, then a fiddle, and now, with Alex Johnson in the fold that past eight months, back to a resonator guitar.
On the Air: Jason Wheeler and Alex Johnson
But the bottom line remains: The band continues to hone its sound, continues to test new material (originals and covers), and continues to makes its mark with an improvisational approach that can adjust to any instrument or guest musician.
“There’s a lot more power in the music than there used to be,” suggested Wheeler. “Now, we’re a lot more solidified and confident in the music. We’ve picked up the tempos. We’ve kind of created a larger presence. We try to bring a wall of sound as opposed to each of us working on our parts.”
Fauxgrass brought that power to Studio X at WYCE-FM this week as part of Local Spins on WYCE, performing a new original, “One-Town Horse,” and a rousing cover of The Church’s “Under the Milky Way.” Listen to the podcast here and a watch a video of “One-Town Horse” below.
PODCAST: Local Spins on WYCE with Fauxgrass
The band has been steadily chipping away on a new album with producer Ian Gorman at Kalamazoo’s La Luna Recording, with hopes of releasing it this fall or by the end of the year.
New Material: Adam Balcer and Tim McKay.
“Ian Gorman’s fantastic to work with, a beautiful studio,” McKay said. “It’s his approach, he has a nice presence.”
Added Wheeler: “We’re really excited for this next album and we want to thank our listeners for being patient.”
The band has a busy summer ahead, performing on Saturday night at the Buses by the Beach Bus Benefit at Camp Blodgett south of Grand Haven. That’s followed by a June 4 performance opening for Greensky Bluegrass at Bell’s Brewery in Kalamazoo, a June 17 gig at Odd Side Ales in Grand Haven, June 26 at the Grand River Water Festival at Riverside Park in Grand Rapids, and July 7 at the Common Ground festival in Lansing. (For more about Fauxgrass, visit fauxgrassmusic.com.)
This week’s edition of Local Spins on WYCE also featured the debut of a new track by Traverse City’s The Accidentals (who release their new “Parking Lot” EP next week), Jackie Chiles and Flushed. In addition, the show rolled out songs by Laith Al-Saadi (the Ann Arbor guitarist who finished fourth on this season’s “The Voice”), The Barbarossa Brothers, Rochelle & the Spoilers and Afro Zuma.
VIDEO: Fauxgrass, “One-Town Horse” (Local Spins on WYCE)
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