Parallel Musical Universe

[Griff]

We went to see Nickel Creeklast night at the new Ice Center at BCC. If we were bluegrass purists we would have been disappointed. We're not and we were not. They're really some kind of jazz/bluegrass fusion band. Chris Thile (mandolin), Sara Watkins (fiddle), Sean Watkins (acoustic guitar), and Some Guy (stand up bass) were all excellent musicians. They played two and a half hours without a playlist doing mostly there own music with the occasional nod to musical influences like the bit of speed Dylan they covered and a quick Cobain flyby. Thile has been spending time with Bela Fleck and Jerry Douglas and has been positively effected. They ended the night with a wonderful version of an 8th century Celtic folk hymn called Slane, which we occasionally butcher at Mass. They noodled around classic Celtic tunes like As I Roved Out and Saint Annes Reel. I can play both these tunes (badly) but never conceived the variational possibilities they rolled out, it was wonderfully mind expanding and a little humbling. The musicians had fun, you could feel it in the music, see it in their interplay, and hear it in their chit chat. Very funny bunch of extremely talented kids. If you like acoustic music you must see this band.