Yeehaw!
Red Butte’s Summer Concert Series is kicking off with a bluegrass bang on Wednesday night with a full night of music by Murder By Death, The Wood Brothers and Devil Makes Three.
Hailing from Bloomington, Indiana, Boulder, Colorado and Santa Cruz California, respectively, these bands are proof-positive that bluegrass is no longer just in Appalachia—for better or worse. But this is not your grandaddy’s bluegrass—this is so-called newgrass. And the influences of these three bands are as varied as their sound.
The Wood Brothers seem to take a low-key approach to the genre, and forgo the banjo and fiddle for an upright bass. it’s what would have happened if Flatt and Scruggs had smoked a lot more weed.
Murder By Death, not-just-a-clever-name, is a darker take on bluegrass. It’s kind of like Nick Cave meets a pre-June Johnny Cash. In a good way.
Headliner Devil Makes Three should provide a happier ending to the evening, even with their noticeable punk influences. The trio has been around for a while, and have played Salt Lake venues as small at Burt’s Tiki Room before headlining at Red Butte. While the primary trio is two guitar players and a upright bass player, keep an eye on Cooper McBean when he puts down the guitar for some banjo pickin’—that’s when the real magic happens.
Also of note: Red Butte has established some new rules for this season, including:
-Lines begin to form at 10:00 a.m.
-Blanket size limit: 4 x 6, or 24 sq. ft.
-No wagons or carts
The Wood Brothers, Murder by Death and Devil Makes Three play Red Butte on Tuesday, May 23, 2018.The show is sold-out.
