At first blush, Jugtown Pirates of Lake Champlain seemed to be on course for a shipwreck. The band's heroin-sheik dirty wardrobe also made its musicians look as if they needed a good scrubbing while following a Phish tour across the United States.
But after few minutes of being drawn to this frantic, Appalachian-inspired sound, I was convinced that it was the result many hours of serious practice. The notched-up pace of otherwise slow hick tunes sounded something akin to bluegrass on LSD. The noise was addicting.
I happened upon this upstart band playing a street festival last spring along Route 66 in downtown Albuquerque, N.M.
The precision was remarkable on such homemade instruments as a washtub bass and washboard. They tossed in a regular stand-up bass and a kazoo and pulled together one of the most creative sounds that I have laid ear to in decades.
All the guys need to do is hit the Laundromat between gigs.
Although some more up on the jam band scene may say he's so 2001, you should give Keller Williams a listen. I think you'd dig him. That's basically all I listened to my senior year in college because my best friend kind of had an obsession with the dude. But, you know, in a good way.
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