The New Roots Exchange, Vol. 1

This makes me very happy!

The New Roots Exchange, Vol. I – A vinyl release of the first recorded collaboration between Red Tail Ring and Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys. Vinyl, digital download, and bonus tracks available exclusively on http://www.earthworkmusic.com.

From the Earthworks Music site:

“There’s a mystical beauty to be felt in a late night gathering of musicians. Fiddle, banjo, guitar and mandolin players seated side by side, with all eyes on the older musicians who sit knee to knee in the center of the concentric circle. Some players in the outer ring of the circle are there for the fun of it; some are using music as a therapy to mend a lost part of themselves. The reasons they are there are as diverse as the players themselves. 

There are also a few who are not shy about asking someone in the center for more information about the origin or history of a tune, who ask “please, would you play that again, a bit slower?” These are the ones who make music their life’s work, the ones whom the vehicle of Oral Tradition has chosen, to pass on these tunes and songs. 

You have in your hands the recorded work of such talented folks, each having been mentored by some older musicians who instilled in them a respect for tradition, a desire to push the envelope a bit, and the drive to pass this tradition along to others. Each started out on the outer fringe of that circular music session, each advancing toward the center as their skill and love for this music blossomed, growing older and taking their place in the embrace of this tradition. 

Turn it up! It’ll bring you to the Center.” 
- Bruce Ling, Fiddler, Hawks and Owls String Band 

The Players: 
RED TAIL RING 
Michael Beauchamp – guitar, vocals 
Laurel Premo – fiddle, vocals
LINDSAY LOU & THE FLATBELLYS 
Keith Billik – banjo
Spencer Cain – bass
Mark Lavengood – dobro 
Joshua Rilko – mandolin, vocals 
Lindsay Lou Rilko – clawhammer banjo, vocals, guitar 

For years, the musicians in Red Tail Ring and Lindsay Lou & the Flatbellys have grown in music together – sharing shows, supporting each other, and always enjoying an opportunity to get together and jam. The two groups share a similar outlook on their craft – the idea that new music is richer today when it has roots in the past. This project marks the first recorded collaboration between these two Michigan-based Americana bands. 

On side A of “The New Roots Exchange, Vol. 1″ the listener gets to sit in on what could be a jam session after hours at a festival. Two traditional numbers are performed live in studio by all of the members of both groups. Side B features a musical trade, with re-imaginings from both bands of one another’s songwriting.

Pick up the album or the digital tracks here.