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The Smithstonians
It’s going to be a busy week for Northwest Arkansas band The Smithstonians, with three concerts scheduled between now and Wednesday at locations in Fayetteville. The bluegrass-inspired roots band formed late last year out of the ashes of several local acts. Catch them at 7 p.m. today (June 12) with the Josh Grider Trio at the Restaurant on the Corner, 3582 N. Arkansas 112; at 9:30 p.m. Saturday (June 13) at the Smoke & Barrel Tavern, 324 W. Dickson St.; or at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday (June 17) at George’s Majestic Lounge, 519 W. Dickson St., as part of the Trees For Mena Benefit.
Filed under: Concert Reminders, In the Spotlight, NWA Music News by Kevin Kinder. Posted on: June 12, 2009 at 6:01 am
http://www2.nwanews.com/blogs/tunedin/2009/06/12/in-the-spotlight-%E2%80%94-the-smithstonians-three-locations-this-week/
- NWA News > Tuned In
If you are paying attention to the music scene in Fayetteville lately, you might notice there’s a little bit of a twang creeping it’s way into it lately.
Cletus Got Shot, 3 Penny Acre, Shout Lulu, and others are part of a kind of Folk/Americana/Bluegrass revival in Fayetteville, and we couldn’t be happier about that fact.
What you get with that kind of thing is a focus on songwriting, and all of a sudden there are a wealth of really good songs being written here in Fayetteville, and a growing music scene that is really coming into its own lately.
Several examples of those really good songs being written in town lately are penned by Morgan Smith of the Smithstonians. These guys have only been playing with their current lineup since October, but they’ve already made a big impact. The band started a few years back and were called Truefolk before adding drummer Damon Singleton, and pedal steel player Jesse Bates, and changing the name to the Smithstonians a few months ago.
Sunday night they were at George’s with Little Rock’s the Damn Bullets, and we saw them recently with Chris Denny and we came away extremely impressed.
We got in touch with the band, and Morgan and Logan were nice enough to sit down with us for an interview.
The Smithstonians from Fville Flyer on Vimeo
The Smithstonians are:
Morgan Smith: Vocals, Banjo, Harmonica, Guitar
Logan LeMaster Bass, Backing Vocals
Jesse Bates: Pedal Steel, Backing Vocals
http://www.fayettevilleflyer.com/2009/03/10/flyer-profile-the-smithstonians/ - Fayetteville Flyer
Discography
Morgan Smith (solo): Piecefulmind
Photos
Bio
The Smithstonians are a three-piece gypsy-folk/ragtime band from the Boston Mountains in Fayetteville, AR. They were nominated for Best New Band in 2009 at the Northwest Arkansas Music Awards.
The Smithstonians singer and main songwriter, Morgan Smith along with double bassist, Logan LeMaster, started the alt-country group Truefolk; which was nominated (after only six months of performing) by the 2005 Ozark Music Awards for honors in two categories: Best Folk/Alt-Country and Best New Artist. The group disbanded in early 2007, and in October 2008, Smith and LeMaster regrouped adding multi-instumentalist Jesse Bates to form the current lineup of The Smithstonians. Their melodic style drifts deliberately through bluegrass, jazz, Brittish and American folk. A distinct flavor of folklore and storytelling is evident through their lyrics about life's travels and the people they have met along the way. The Arkansas Traveler referred to their music as a "[celebration of] the rich musical tradition of the region, but they're not afraid to wander where creativity leads them."
The Smithstonians have been honored to play the legendary stage of George's Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville many times. Other venues they have played include The Smoke & Barrel Tavern, Restaurant on the Corner (ROTC), The BoomBoom Room, Squid & Whale Pub in Eureka Springs, and Whitewater Tavern in Little Rock. They performed at the Arkansas Democratic Party presidential rally in 2008 hosted by Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen. They have opened for large touring acts such as Col. Bruce Hampton, The Codetalkers, Mountain of Venus, and Stoney Larue.
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