His tones are smoky, soulful and timeless, embodying the old spirit of country and the contemporary soul of rock and roll. Northern California native Ben Morrison has been compared to a young Kris Kristofferson, a male counterpoint to Amy Winehouse, and chunky, spicy peanut butter. ‘It’s as if his cells are music notes and even his spoken voice sounds like he swallowed an amplifier’ says Maddy Cristall of Words on Sound. Having grown up in a musical family in Petaluma, Calif., Morrison made a name for himself over the past decade as the frontman (alongside brother Alex) of the Brothers Comatose. The Bay Area bluegrass band’s success saw Morrison touring nearly nonstop for the past decade, in

Will Evans- Vocals, guitar, drums, didgeridoo Andy Wrba- Bass Jay Driscoll- guitar John Wayno- piano, keys Learn more.

There’s something about the bend of the mandolin, the rustle of the guitar, the gale-like wave of the vocal melody…, that calls you to adventure. Songwriting duo Emily Burns and Aaron Markovitz have always been adapting. The two Michiganders met as individual music makers in the blues open-mic circles; then they studied their craft together in California, and wound up taking to the seas to cover Top 40 hits for a cruise ship’s dance hall. After that, they started a southern rock-inclined, neo-country quartet, called Escaping Pavement. But most of their fans started finding them after 2014, when they kept their intrepid-sounding name but pared down to just a duo. With just their voices, an ac

Minneapolis band Farewell Milwaukee released their fourth full-length album, FM, on September 9. FM is the product of successfully achieving the balance of furthering their artistic careers with a family life. “[The album] has the first song ever written about my daughter, called ‘Hurt No More,’” says front man Ben Lubeck. "I texted my wife a few weeks ago after revisiting the album saying that this was the record I wanted my daughter to remember me by. Musically and lyrically.” Mainstays of the Minneapolis music scene since 2008, Farewell Milwaukee embraces the role that their Midwestern towns have played in shaping them artistically, garnering them fans through their authentic lyrics, lush

Hailed as “Midwestern rock heroes” by American Songwriter, Red Wanting Blue has spent the last twenty years establishing themselves as one of the indie world’s most enduring and self-sufficient acts, notching appearances everywhere from Letterman to NPR and reaching #3 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart, all while operating largely outside the confines of the traditional music industry. For their powerful new album, ‘The Wanting,’ the band handed production duties over to acclaimed singer/songwriter Will Hoge, who helped them create their most ambitious, fully realized collection yet. Recorded in Nashville, TN, the record draws on many of the group’s traditional strengths—indelible melodies,

Will Evans has spent the last decade as the primary songwriter, drummer, and front man for the Roots Rock outfit Barefoot Truth. The band released four full-length albums and has surpassed over 20 million plays on Spotify. With BFT on an extended hiatus, Will has opened a new chapter in his musical journey. In 2018, Will joined his good friend Trevor Hall as a member of his touring band. Together they have performed to passionate crowds across North America and Europe. On Election Day in November 2018, Will released his third full-length solo album “RISE”. His deepest and most personal album to date, songs contain topics of humanity, compassion, and a reflection of the current political time

A native-born living West Virginia flat pick guitar legend, Robin Kessinger keeps a busy schedule, teaching both beginner and advanced guitar students, and still finds time for memorable concerts, workshops and contests. His awards include the 1985 National Flatpick Championship at Winfield, Kansas; the 1989 and 1990 Galax, Virginia, Best Performer championship; and firsts in West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky and Georgia. Robin headlines many festivals and judges up-and-coming flat-pick artists in contests around the country. He has appeared on PBS and BBC television specials and NPR radio shows. He has been an instructor at the Augusta since 1983. Robin lists his influences as "everything I

"We grew up listening to Radiohead and the Beatles and Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd," says Griffin Sherry, guitarist/singer in The Ghost Of Paul Revere. "Everyone assumed we were a bluegrass band because we were playing these traditional instruments, but we weren’t writing traditional music. We were just writing songs with the instruments we had." The result is a sound that the Portland, Maine-based band describes as "holler folk," not because it involves a lot of hollering, per se, but because it invokes the rich communal tradition of field hollers, with their call-and-response melodies, sing-along hooks, and densely layered harmonies. That sense of musical camaraderie is essential to everyt

Over the last decade, New England native Stephen Kellogg has performed more than 1500 concerts around the world, raised thousands of dollars for causes close to his heart, been named Armed Forces Entertainer of the Year, and penned singles for artists like platinum selling rock band O.A.R and American Idol winner Nick Fradiani. Stephen’s most recent writing work with legendary guitarist Robert Randolph, led to a 2017 Grammy nomination for "Best Contemporary Blues Record." He's also had his songs covered by international major label acts and released ten studio albums of his own yielding hundreds of thousands of ticket and record sales. A father of four and married to his high school sweethea

Try not to step on the chalk outlines when navigating through prairie pickers The Dead South's catalogue. Over the course of two full-length albums, it's true that the villainous, murderous match-strikers and revenge-takers outnumber those with good intentions, but in the end, no heinous act goes unpunished. The Dead South, a gold rush vibing four-piece acoustic bluegrass set from Saskatchewan, infuse the genre's traditional trappings with an air of frontier recklessness, whiskey breakfasts and grizzled tin-pan showmanship. The sound, build on a taut configuration of cello, mandolin, banjo and guitar, speeds like a train past polite definitions of bluegrass into the grittier, rowdier spaces

If the opening notes on Joe Pug’s new LP “Windfall” are a bit disorienting, his fans won’t likely be surprised. The Austin, TX singer songwriter has made a habit of defying expectations so the piano-driven “Bright Beginnings” and the atmospheric rumination of “Great Hosannas” are just further indication that he’s quite comfortable stepping outside of the guy-with-a-guitar trappings of the genre. His rise has been as improbable as it has been impressive. After dropping out of college and taking on work as a carpenter in Chicago, he got his musical start by providing CDs for his fans to pass along to their friends. This led to a string of sold out shows and a record deal with Nashville indie L

Today we're excited to announce our 25th Anniversary lineup of amazing artists for the 2019 Oyster Ridge Music Festival! Keep ORMF Free! DONATE TODAY!

Help Keep Oyster Ridge Music Festival Free! DRAWING TODAY, May 4th AT 4PM!!! Your Entry Will Help Make the 2019 Festival Unforgettable Tickets: 1 for $100 or 4 for $300 - Only 300 Tickets Available! - GRAND PRIZE - 2019 Wyoming Commissioner's License (Valued at $15,000) This year, ORM will refund the winner the cost of the Wyoming Game & Fish License fee of the species they choose (resident or non-resident). 1st PLACE PRIZE Leica Geovid R Rangefinding 10x42 Binocular (Valued at $1,400) ORMF May be free to attend, but it takes significant funding to make it a reality - please consider helping out and give yourself a shot at incredible prizes. If you win and don't hunt, give it to a friend who