The veteran West Michigan bluegrass band reunited with pal Billy Strings in the studio for a special session. Listen to the first single and fresh tracks from other Michigan artists.
Happy Bluegrass Pickers: Full Cord with Billy Strings in Glenn Brown’s studio. (Courtesy Photo)
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It’s apropos that West Michigan’s Full Cord would come “full circle” by recording two new singles with bluegrass powerhouse guitarist Billy Strings.
After all, band members have been jamming with the Ionia County-bred and one-time Traverse City resident ever since William Apostol, aka Billy Strings, was a teenager.
The now 33-year-old musician has become the biggest name in bluegrass – a global superstar and the face of a genre that’s undergone a remarkable resurgence in recent years.
Yet he remains a humble, hometown picker who’s more than happy to reunite with Michigan musicians who helped hone his skills around festival campfires and during late-night jam sessions.
“We just ended up hanging out and picking music and having a lot of fun anytime we could get together,” Full Cord bassist Todd Kirchner recalls of those past years. “Man, what a cool experience. It’s interesting because you still hear some of the tunes that Billy plays that my dad taught him.”
Earlier this year, the guitarist returned to Michigan from touring in Australia to join Full Cord at Glenn Brown’s recording studio in East Lansing, performing two tracks with the band, “Hubris Came to Town” and “How a Muse Gets By,” both written by mandolinist Brian Oberlin.
A Bevy of Shows and Festivals Ahead: Full Cord performing recently in Kalamazoo. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
The first was released late last month. “How a Muse Gets By” will drop in early August, with plans for releasing the tracks on vinyl, along with special artwork-enhanced copies of the “double-side single” available exclusively at Billy Strings’ Ionia Freak Fair festival taking place Aug. 28-29 at the Ionia County Fairgrounds. “Hubris Came to Town” shot up the charts after its release, currently sitting at No. 11 on the Bluegrass Today chart.
“Billy is incredible, man,” Oberlin recounted. “He showed up to the studio just burnt from the road … and he was up till 3 a.m. with his young child (but) it took him about 15 minutes and he was ready to go. Man, he’s a ripper and he just picked right up on it and got in the groove of it. He’s the consummate professional.”
In addition to performing at the Ionia Freak Fair, Full Cord – led by Kirchner, Oberlin and guitarist Eric Langejans – has a hectic schedule of shows and festival appearance in coming weeks. The band plays Stormcloud Brewery’s “13th Beerthday” in Frankfort on Saturday (June 20), the Charlotte Bluegrass Festival in Charlotte on June 25, Smiling Acres Music Festival in Trufant on June 27, Pond Hill Farm in Harbor Springs on July 2, and Lake Ann Brewing in Lake Ann on July 3 and July 5.
The band also plays Bluestone Vineyards in Lake Leelanau on Aug. 15, the Grand Haven Free Fridays series on Aug. 21 and the Fishstock Americana Festival in Lansing on Aug. 22.
“Especially, we’re pretty excited about Charlotte coming up. It’s where Eric and I met before we started the band and got to picking,” Kirchner recalled. “It’s one of my favorite festivals to hang out and play music, and all of us kind of cut our teeth on that festival.”
Added Langejans: “It’s kind of crazy, too. It was Billy’s first festival. … So it’s kind of got a special place in our hearts.”
Celebrating 54 years, Charlotte Bluegrass Festival takes place June 25-27 at the Eaton County Fairgrounds with genre stars such as The Del McCoury Band, The Travelin’ McCourys, The Larry Sparks Show, The David Mayfield Parade and more on tap. Get more information and tickets online here.
In addition to showcasing two Full Cord songs, this week’s edition of the Local Spins Michigan Music Showcase radio program featured fresh music from several Michigan artists: Jack Droppers & The Best Intentions, Hot Girls, The Bootstrap Boys, Pablo Eskobear, Checkered Lilies, Bleau Otis, Greg Nagy, Mac Saturn and Saltbreaker. Listen to the radio show podcast below.
The Michigan Music Showcase airs at 11 a.m. Fridays and 5 p.m. Sundays on WYCE (88.1 FM) and online at wyce.org, and on Interlochen Public Radio at 7 p.m. Saturdays. Check out previous show podcasts online here.
More about Billy Strings: Check out Local Spins’ review and photos of Billy Strings’ surprise appearance with Trey Anastasio at Meijer Gardens earlier this week.
PODCAST: Local Spins Michigan Music Showcase (6/19/26)
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