LouGrass Sessions: Whiskey Bent Valley Boys

LouGrass: A Celebration of Kentucky Music

Enjoy free Bluegrass by Whiskey Bent Valley Boys on Friday, May 29th, from 6:00-9:00 PM at Paristown Arts District.

Now these boys will take you through the hills of ol' Kentucky, bearing the stores, traditions, and liquor that date back a century. This old-time band delivers with an intensity that would knock the socks right off their forefathers' feet.

Hailing from the back woods of Bloomfield, Kentucky. The Whiskey Bent Valley Boys pay homage to their southern kin. Songs from the tobacco fields to the rivers, iron skillets to moonshine stills, upbeat and professional, this band possesses the skill to honor history and preserve the instrument, their style, and every authentic nuance of the day. With their sense of fashion, from overalls to string ties, straw hats to silk vests, along with a turbo-charged performance, their approach breathes fire into this vintage genre.

Incorporating time-honored treasures from such icons as Roscoe Holcomb, The Stanley Brothers, and fiddle legend Tommy Jarrell, or a roster of original compositions including crowd-pleasers “Graveyard Blues” or “Old Kentucky,” the band puts on a timeless, energized show, playing everything from ballads, breakdowns, sea shanties, and swamp stomps. Audiences from children on their parents' knees to packed saloons past midnight, and finding favor with the older generation as well, make for a wide range of appeal.

The boys take cues from parents and grandparents who have tapped into folk country and bluegrass through festivals, radio and endless collections of vinyl recordings. Band founder Col. Mason Dixon hails from a long line of musicians and will tell you it's not so much in the whiskey as it is the DNA. Each member's family performs and enjoys the indigenous music of the Appalachian foothills and pastures of Kentucky.

Appearances on a wide range of radio and TV programs, state fairs, square dances, and festivals have brought them an active fan base for this region. Oftentimes, the boys bring a delicious yield of their summer crops to gigs in bushel baskets for the taking. Going even more down to earth, they are making their CD packaging “green.” All of their records are made from industrial hemp paper and recycled cardboard, with environmentally friendly, vegetable-based inks.

No matter what's chillin' in your mason jar, sour mash or sweet tea, come on out for a live show where the Whiskey Bent Valley Boys will be pounding out the swing dancing, foot stompin, hard driving tunes that are guaranteed to tickle your innards.