Touring Test
Hillfolk Noir
Grab a drink, sit down, take a breath, have a listen for a
moment, an hour, a night, because here they come with their
earnest musical narratives of the back alleys, the open range,
the hollow, the front porch, the lives behind the love, want,
fear and fracture of a world that despite all adversity remains,
within their songs, hopeful, thoughtful, jubilant.
The band deems their sound Junkerdash – part folk, part
bluegrass, part string-band blues, part punk, and most certainly
wholly kickass. Bourbon and the Western Swing are a recommended
pairing with Hillfolk’s Junkerdash, we’re told, which seems
spot-on.
Fronted by multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, Travis
Ward, this trio of neo-traditionalists includes Alison Ward on
musical saw, washboard, banjo, and purely gorgeous vocals, as
well as Mike Waite keeping the heartbeat, rhythm and flow alive
on double bass.
John Doe (X, the Knitters), patron saint of the American Dream,
once said, “If John Steinbeck owned a speakeasy, Hillfolk Noir
would be the house band.”
Amen.
See you at the show, on the dance floor, in the throes of
another broke-down and beautiful Saturday night.
– CW, 2018
