Andy Hall of the band The Infamous Stringdusters performs at Rams Head Live in on Friday, March 29, 2014 in Baltimore, MD. Photos By Anthony Washington
The Infamous Stringdusters along with opening act Fruition stopped by Rams Head Live on Friday, March 29. The bluegrass band from Charlottesville, VA are on tour in support of their upcoming album, Let It Go, which will be released tomorrow, April 1. “Let It Go” will be the bands fourth studio album.
The Infamous Stringdusters are made up of Chris Pandolfi on banjo; Jeremy Garrett on fiddle; Travis Book on bass; Andy Falco on guitar; and Andy Hall on dobro. The band has gained a reputation for stretching the limits of the bluegrass genre with their style of play which some people call pop bluegrass. The band is inspired by various genres of music. So much so that since 2010 the band has been helping produce a three-day music festival called the “The Festy Experience” in Virginia. The festival line always includes bands from various genres.
Over the years the Infamous Stringdusters have received three different awards from the much respected International Bluegrass Music Association, better known as the IBMA to those in the industry. In addition, they were nominated for a Grammy in 2011 for “Best Country Instrumental”.
There are not many bands in the bluegrass genre doing things the way that the Infamous Stringdusters are doing things. The band has its own label [High Country Recordings], they stream their live shows via their own Mixlr site , their live shows have a jam band element to it that includes a brief intermission, and last but not least rock & roll lighting. Most of the time when you go to see a bluegrass band play a show, you get minimal stage lighting and that is it. Which makes sense because like jazz, bluegrass is a genre that the artist and fans alike are mainly focused on musicianship. However, the Infamous Stringdusters take their show to another level by bringing along a lighting rig on tour that you would normally see at a rock show.
Their performance at Rams Head Live was the first time I had seen a bluegrass band perform with a highly coordinated rock & roll light show. It really added to their performance and it made for some great photo opportunities. The band played for more than two hours to an audience that spanned generations and that responded in-kind to the energy the band was putting out on stage. For more information about upcoming shows or the bands new album, visit thestringdusters.com. Enjoy the photos!
Jeremy Garrett of The Infamous Stringdusters.
Chris Pandolfi (right) of The Infamous Stringdusters.
Mimi Naja of the band Fruition.
Travis Book of the The Infamous Stringdusters.
More Photos:
The Infamous Stringdusters at Rams Head Live – Images by Anthony Washington
