Contributed by Paul Morley
The Palmer-based band, Braided River, a crew of past and present educators, including two former principals, plus the head brewer of Bearpaw River Brewing Company, has released its first CD, a collection of four original songs and covers of Josh Ritter and Emmylou Harris.
“Directions” is streaming on SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-545054036
Named for the silty and sultry Matanuska River, Braided River’s originals range from soulful to rambunctious. Weaving vocal harmonies, mandolin chops, fervently fluid guitar leads, and rollicking rhythm, covers trend toward rocksy, bluesy tunes, including the band’s take on Jimi Hendrix, Talking Heads, David Bowe, Lake Street Dive, Leonard Cohen, Grace Potter, plus a dash of Johnny Cash with a Jerry Garcia twist.
Among others, Braided River has opened for Eilen Jewell, Clinton Fearon, Great American Taxi and the Denali Cooks. The band’s most memorable gigs include Salmonfest, the Girdwood Forest Fair, the Anderson Music Festival, the Seward Music and Arts Festival, as well as Alice’s Champaign Palace in Homer, the Linwood in Seldovia, the Fairview Inn in Talkeetna, the Sitzmark in Girdwood, Ivory Jacks and the Boatel in Fairbanks, and with a dancefloor made of ice at the Iditarod checkpoint at Skwentna.
Contact Information:
More info, video clips and photos at Facebook/BraidedRiverBand.
