The revamped and re-energized indie-folk and Americana band of multi-instrumentalists makes its Local Spins Wednesdays debut in Grand Rapids tonight. Learn more about this emerging band.
From Their SXSW Debut in Austin to SpeakEZ Lounge: Silver Creek Revival (Courtesy Photo)
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When northern Michigan’s Silver Creek Revival hits the state tonight at SpeakEZ Lounge in Grand Rapids, the Americana and indie-folk band will officially celebrate the third anniversary of its “first real gig” — to the day.
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“After a couple hundred shows — and a few different bass players — we’re a very different band than we were,” said drummer Jack Jensen.
“Henry Hess joined us on piano and mandolin a little over a year ago, and Rowdy Fingers joined on bass six months ago, and have both added so much to our overall sound and vibe. They are both amazing singers and songwriters.”
It’s also the band’s first show since performing at the massive South By Southwest festival in Austin last month, “so folks can expect a lot of pent-up energy to come out,” he added. “We’re really excited to get back on stage.”
The Local Spins Wednesdays show starts at 7:30 p.m. Get details here.
Hannah Woodruff of Silver Creek Revival calls the band’s music “song-oriented.” And that means serving each piece of music with the varied instrumentation that it demands.
“We are all musicians that can play multiple instruments, so we like to switch it up during our live performances,” said Woodruff, who plays saxophone, flute, acoustic guitar and bass, as well as singing lead and backing vocals.
“We don’t keep the same instrumentation throughout a set, because like I said, we like to serve the song. Maybe a song would sound really great with a saxophone solo, so we accommodate that, or maybe it’s a mandolin solo instead. So when you see us live, you’ll see us maybe passing an acoustic guitar around the stage and we try to utilize all of those different skills.”
Formed in 2021, the band – Woodruff, Jensen, Sam Hess (lead guitar, rhythm guitar, lead and backing vocals), Ashley Christopher (banjo, lead vocals, backing vocals, rhythm guitar, kazoo), Henry Hess (mandolin, piano, lead vocals, backing vocals and bass) and Rowdy Fingers (bass)(drums) – has captivated fans ever since.
VIDEO: Silver Creek Revival, “Ooh Wee” (Dogtown Studio)
Based in Manton, where rehearsals take place, members actually come from communities throughout the region, Traverse City to Kalkaska.
Silver Creek Revival released its self-produced, self-titled full-length album in 2022, followed by a live EP recorded at Dogtown Studio in Grand Rapids later that same year.
They released their full-length sophomore album, “Young in Warm Weather,” last year, recorded this time around with producer and recording engineer Shane Cody of the band Houndmouth.
“Working with Shane Cody as producer on our last album really changed the way we arrange songs. It’s kind of a cliché, but he really stressed the ‘less is more’ aspect, and not stepping on each other’s parts,” Jensen said. “That experience definitely made us better songwriters and performers.
Woodruff called the band’s musical progression “an interesting journey,” noting that production of the band’s first album was actually the final project for her audio recording class.
Switching Up Instruments on Stage: The band recently added Henry Hess to make it a quintet. (Courtesy Photo)
“Shane (Cody) brought kind of a new, different element and really inspired us to maybe try different chord progressions under a melodic line … or maybe moving verses and choruses around and things like that.”
She described the new material as more guitar-driven as well. “It’s going to be a really interesting, fun listening experience,” predicted Woodruff, who attended Interlochen Arts Academy and now works at Interlochen Center for the Arts.
The album builds on the extensive catalog of songs the band has created.
“Ashley and Sam are the main songwriters of the band. Not only are they great lyricists, they are also prolific,” said Woodruff, noting that she and Hess also contribute “to the pool of original material.”
“The band never runs out of new songs. The songs are well-crafted from the start, so they rarely need much thought and effort to be ready to play live.”
As for those live shows and recording more new material, Silver Creek Revival has a busy summer ahead.
“We’re playing a ton of shows and festivals in 2025, all over the place. From The Orpheum Theater in Hancock, Mich., to Blue Plum Festival in Johnson City, Tenn.,” Jensen said.
“We’re heading back to (Grand Rapids’) Dogtown Studio in May to record a few songs, and will release a live EP from that session soon. We’re planning to record our third full album sometime this summer, and hope to release that in the fall.”
Check out the 2024 edition of Local Spins on WYCE featuring Silver Creek Revival below.
PODCAST: Local Spins on WYCE (5/24/24)
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