wordplay by Brian Kenney
images by Aaron Farrington & Soren McCarty

Artists take risks…as a method of growth, for without any semblance of reinvention artists would, in a sense, compromise their artistic integrity. But when said artists find themselves surrounded by dedicated fans –fans who hold tried and true to tradition-- a certain responsibility comes 'round to make those fans happy.

Yonder Mountain String Band has fans such as these. They call them "kinfolk" and the band is tirelessly dedicated to their fans, more so than other acts locally and nationally. And the kinfolk have embraced YMSB with such diligence during their steady ascent in the world of bluegrass to pinnacles unexpected, where YMSB have found themselves occupying their own niche in the bluegrass ecosystem.

And with their latest offering, Yonder have redefined their sound, their sense of balance, their raw nature; all of which can be both a blessing and a burden. Image caught up with banjo player Dave Johnston on a recent break from relentless touring; "We ended up with an album with rippin' bluegrass," says Johnston of the latest self-titled disc. "But [we] approached it in a non-traditional way, which really appeals to me to me because we're not a traditional band. It’s always been forward-thinking and this is the first time we've captured it in the studio."
In the world of progressive bluegrass, dissecting the familiar can be an albatross. Even so, much as an album title can cause an imbalance of a consistent composite, and consistent is something that Yonder Mountain String Band has prided themselves on being for the past nine years or so. Not that they are predicable in any facet of the mind, but with their past eight releases (four studio releases and four live releases, Mountain Tracks I-IV), fans acclimated to certain expectations that the band catered to.

But on their self-titled latest release Yonder Mountain String Band, Yonder approached the recording with a burning desire to take their jam grass songwriting to the next level. Enlisting the aid of producer Tom Rothrock (Beck, James Blunt, Elliott Smith), they took their traditional bluegrass four part harmonies of banjo/bass/mandolin/guitar, and poured them in a blender, so to speak. In the studio, Rothrock dug deep into the creative souls of all four members of YMSB: banjo player Johnston, mandolin player Jeff Austin, bass player Ben Kauffman, guitarist Adam Aijala.

"We had a full amount of control over what we wanted to do," says Johnston, "And we were fully into it being a collaborative effort. There was never a pressure to make something a certain way. There were a lot of different suggestions to explore different avenues and different sounds and what came of it was what you have in your hands. It was very democratic."

Rothrock also encouraged the band to venture outside of tradition with the addition of drums: usually a major faux pas in various circles of bluegrass. He also urged the band to create in the studio, rather than bring in what they had already haphazardly polished on the road during sound checks or as live tracks. "[Rothrock's] input certainly gave the songs a new and interesting feel," commented guitarist Aijala on the producers will to fuel Yonder's creative energy.

 It was studio effort; after all, that Rothrock had been brought aboard to yoke. And Yonder followed suit, eager to create an album that coalesces unto itself.  "We knew we wanted it to be more of a textual album rather than just a song…song…song." Johnston says. "Something we wanted to pay attention to was exploiting textures more than we have in the past"
The result for these renegades of jam grass is a more modern, progressive, polished YMSB, at once approachable for the mainstream while also keeping at its heart, the spirit of true live bluegrass that those diehard fans desire.  Finding heavier rotation not only on local bluegrass stations but national stations formatted beyond bluegrass, the self-titled release finds YMSB well balanced between a clever proportion of production and a maturing songwriting, debuting at #1 on the Billboard Bluegrass Albums Chart.

Songs ring out with a sense of familiarity such as the radio friendly (and at once infamous for featuring a drummer) "How 'Bout You," which echoes a bass line akin to Sublime's "What I Got" and lead track "Sidewalk Stars" which just shreds as a live number. "For me," says mandolin player Austin of personal reinvention on the self-titled YMSB disc, "it was a necessary step the band had to take, just because we've been letting ourselves experiment to the full width of the spectrum. It was a part of me that was just dying to come out." For more traditional folksier numbers, "Angel" presents American Folk Grass and "Fastball" is just pure fun bluegrass.

But it’s these New Year’s shows that truly bring out the down home "kinfolk" attitude of Yonder. Now a tradition heading into its 3rd year, Yonder has sold out the Fillmore on Dec 30th and Dec 31st for all three years. Before that: the Paramount Theatre, (while Big Head Todd headlined the Fillmore before Yonder usurped them, relocating BHTM to the Paramount this New Year) and before the Paramount, it was Boulder's Fox Theatre for 2000-2001. "Our first one was the Wolf Tongue [Brewery] in Nederland" recalls Johnston, who sees playing at the Fillmore a personal New Year’s highlight. "It's kind of hard to step up from the Fillmore because Red Rocks is too cold," he says with a laugh.

Certainly you can take the boys out of Ned but you can’t take the Ned out of the boys. Yonder still calls the musically hip and culturally commune remote outpost above Boulder home, headlining Nedfest on occasions in the past seven years since their debut there in 1999. They bring their kinfolk home for the tradition of New Year’s at the Fillmore on Dec 30th and 31st.

December 30th-31st @ The Fillmore

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