
Kitchen Dwellers bring new brand of bluegrass to Missoula
William Munoz
(Missoula Current) Bluegrass music developed in the 1940's in Appalachia, finding its roots in the traditional English, Scottish and Irish ballads that immigrants brought with them at the time.
The blues and jazz influences are also critical to the style that Bill Monroe out of Kentucky, and Ralph Stanley and his brother, Carter, originated.
Missoula has seen the evolution of bluegrass music over the decades as bands played in town at various venues and events, including the late 1970 Aber Day Kegger's.
Some of the legends include Flatt and Scruggs, Doc Watson (with Merle), New Grass Revival, David Grissman and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, among others. More recent bands have included the The String Cheese Incident, Yonder Mountain String Band, and Railroad Earth (who will be at the Wilma February 27).
This brings me to the performance of Bozeman's Kitchen Dwellers at the Wilma on Saturday night. The evolution of bluegrass and the influence of other musical forms, as well as the desire of the musicians to take us on a journey, is front and center with the Kitchen Dwellers.
They play traditional bluegrass instruments: Shawn Swain (Mandolin), Torrin Daniels (Banjo), Joe Funk (Upright Bass), and Max Davies (Acoustic Guitar).
What the Kitchen Dwellers are doing in their music by fusing bluegrass with rock and psychedelic is making the live performance more engaging. This band has gotten tighter as a group over the past year or so since I last saw them.
Clearly the road has been musically great. From the newest album and the live performance, it is clear they are taking the time to reflect and not let the monotony of the road depress their creativity.
While well-known in Montana, they are gaining serious recognition across the county at bluegrass festivals.