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Emmitt-Nershi Band

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FEATURED SONG
Flight of the Durban
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Flight of the Durban
Released: Sep 29, 2009
Label: SCI Fidelity

General Info

  • Genre: Americana / Bluegrass / Rock

    Location Nederland / Crested Butte CO, US

    Profile Views: 318268

    Last Login: 6/16/2011

    Member Since 6/22/2007

    Website www.emmittnershiband.com

    Record Label SCI Fidelity Records - www.scifidelity.com

    Type of Label Indie

  • Bio

    Emmitt-Nershi Band New Country Blues (SCI Fidelity Records) With years of collective experience under their belts, Drew Emmitt and Bill Nershi exemplify the forward-thinking modern bluegrass musician. As linchpins of two legendary jam-bands --Drew with Leftover Salmon, Bill with the String Cheese Incident--both men have done the stadium-filling, high-profile rock 'n' roll thing to perfection. Along the way, however, they've honed their songwriting and playing chops and studied the bluegrass, rock and jazz masters they admire. Above all, Drew and Bill have shared a commitment to keeping music human-scaled and honest. Those qualities are found in abundance on their latest and greatest collaboration, New Country Blues--11 tunes made in Newgrass heaven. Actually, the duo cut New Country Blues not far from home, in Colorado. Drew, who was born in Tucson, AZ and grew up in the heart of bluegrass country in Nashville, had been busy touring with Bill as the Emmitt-Nershi Band and had even done some reunion gigs with Leftover Salmon. Meanwhile, Bill had come to the Centennial State by way of New York State and New Jersey. Like his mandolin-playing bandmate, Bill had taken up bluegrass after catching a memorable edition of the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in the early 1980s. Back then he'd intended to return to New York, but the lure of blue-sky bluegrass in Colorado proved irresistible. For New Country Blues, these two pickers went to write songs over a long weekend in Estes Park, CO. "We wrote the songs in three days," Drew says. "We holed up in this house and we just sat and came up with these tunes. It was a really smooth process. We bring out a lot of good things in each other musically, and we do well playing off each other." Bill agrees, but he admits he wasn't totally sure about the outcome of their collaboration in Estes Park. "I was a little nervous, because I hadn't really written a lot of material at one time before," he says from his home in Nederland, CO. "But it was real spontaneous, and both of us were willing to say yes to the other person's ideas." Perhaps because Drew and Bill had cut their teeth in the somewhat more fast-moving world of their respective bands, they were willing to catch ideas on the fly and turn them into fresh music for New Country Blues. As Drew laughs, "Playing with bluegrass pickers, it's not like the big ego of rock 'n' roll." Growing up in Nashville in the 1970s, he was aware of bluegrass and old-time string music but was more into Outlaw country and rock 'n' roll. "I never played bluegrass until I came to Colorado," he says. (Today he lives in Crested Butte with his wife and two children.) Each man describes an epiphany in which they realized their true mission in life. For Bill it was Telluride and the inescapable influence of the Will the Circle Be Unbroken album his father bought upon its 1972 release. Drew says it was a combination of receiving a mandolin from his mother (he'd already been playing guitar) and seeing the legendary progressive bluegrass band Hot Rize. Drew began to explore the music in earnest, and played in his first band--Emily Cantrell and the Porphyry Mountain Boys. (Porphyry Mountain is a noted Colorado peak, in Jamestown.) Like the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack nearly 30 years later, Will the Circle Be Unbroken introduced an entire generation to bluegrass. These days, of course, bluegrass is everywhere, adapting and evolving in strange, wonderful new ways. The Emmitt-Nershi Band takes the music in unexpected directions on New Country Blues, and Drew and Bill are very conscious of the need for the kind of tradition-rooted experimentation that you'll find in their music. "We're coming at it from a different angle than a lot of bluegrass musicians do," Bill says. Certainly, New Country Blues contains some blues (on the title track), an assortment of intelligently conceived and beautifully executed instrumentals, and inspired songs that make it clear that these men have learned a thing or two about writing since their days living on Salmon and String Cheese. "There's fewer boundaries in this band than in our big bands, and more room for experimentation," Drew says. "And I do a lot more playing, solo-wise, than I have on any record. On my three solo records I hadn't taken a lot of solos." The title track came out of a simple need. "We'd kind of written a lot of tunes over a few days, and I was sittin' there thinking, you know, we don't have a fast bluegrass tune on this record," Drew says. "And I'd never written a song in F-sharp, and started just playing this riff. Literally, within five minutes the song was written." A similar spirit pervades the entirety of New Country Blues. Andy Thorn and Tyler Grant add guitar, banjo and bass, while Keith Moseley steps in on bass on "I Come from the Country" and frees up Tyler to shine on flat-picked guitar. The chord changes are sharp and a little out of the ordinary. And in keeping with the spirit of Newgrass pioneers such as David Grisman and Sam Bush, Drew and Bill sneak in some jazzy moments and lush harmonies. It's a record of big ideas and subtle musical touches, and Drew says they've had a blast playing the new tunes for live audiences. (Emmitt and Nershi started touring together back in fall 2007, and since then have played for audiences all over the country.) They're planning shows in the Northeast for fall 2009, and they'll feature the new tunes-- gorgeous songs on the order of "These Days" along with adventurous instrumentals such as "Mango Tango" and "Surfing the Red Sea." It's the collective spirit that counts, and the Emmitt-Nershi Band seem to have plenty of it. Their songful moments are balanced by the kind of virtuosic but distinctly un-flashy picking that comes out of experience. You can't fake the blues feeling in "New Country Blues," and you get the feeling that these guys really believe in the possibilities that America grants musicians of their questing bent. It's a new country, and Drew Emmitt and Bill Nershi are proud to blaze a trail to find it. Management - Christine Stauder / Red Light Management - 646-292-7400 Booking - Barron Ruth / Skyline Music - 866-531-2172 x102 / www.skylineonline.com

  • Members

    DREW EMMITT - mandolin/vocals / BILL NERSHI - guitar/vocals / ANDY THORN - banjo/vocals / TYLER GRANT - bass/vocals

  • Influences

  • Sounds Like

Videos & More ENB Info:

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Bio:

DREW EMMITT

As the dynamic lead singer and mandolin player with the popular jamband Leftover Salmon and his own Drew Emmitt Band, Drew is a true renaissance man on musical instruments. Playing mandolin, fiddle, acoustic and electric guitar, he's a string man to be reckoned with. Fans and peers alike marvel at his powerful crystal-clear, pitch-perfect vocal style. He excels in unique energy driven mandolin licks and his influences include a pantheon of musical heroes including Lowell George, Steve Morse, Duane Allman, John Cowan, Bill Monroe, Sam Bush, Hot Rize and New Grass Revival.

BILL NERSHI

From the saloons of Telluride to the some of the most sought after venues in America, Bill Nershi has delighted countless fans as a guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and founding member of the String Cheese Incident. A seasoned veteran of flat-picking and a variety of acoustic styles, Nershi adds a unique, colorful perspective to virtually any musical situation he encounters, and his enthusiasm and playful spirit encourage an interactive, participatory experience for musicians and fans alike. His most recent forays into dobro, bass, and lap steel playing, as well as his accomplished songwriting contributions with the recently-formed Honkytonk Homeslice, prove that his musical horizons will only continue to expand.

ANDY THORN

Andy Thorn is a young banjoist who is fast emerging as one of a new generation of hot pickers. Andy has played in many different groups through the years. While studying music at the University of North Carolina, he played with the UNC Jazz Band as well as the Big Fat Gap bluegrass band. Andy spent the summers of 2003 and 04 in Colorado touring with the Broke Mountain Bluegrass Band, winning the Rockygrass banjo and band contests in 2003. 2005 was an exciting year for Andy, as touring with Larry Keel and Natural Bridge allowed him to play at some of the biggest festivals in the country. Andy has also shared the stage in the past with Jim Lauderdale at Bonnaroo, Frank Wakefield, Tony Rice, Darol Anger, Yonder Mountain String Band, Chris Thile and Tony Trishcka.

TYLER GRANT

Tyler Grant is a young guitarist with high aspirations. He became the 2008 National Flatpicking Champion for placing first at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, KS. He also appeared at Winfield in 2005 and placed second. He placed first at the 2008 New England Flatpicking Championship, the 2005 Wayne C. Henderson Festival Guitar Contest, and the 2003 Colorado Flatpicking Championship at Rockygrass. He holds a BFA in Music Performance from California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), and is an active and experienced performer and teacher of many instruments and styles ranging from classical to bluegrass. He has played guitar with the Drew Emmitt Band since 2005 and bass with the Emmitt-Nershi Band since 2007.

Management - Christine Stauder / Red Light Management - 646-292-7400

Booking - Barron Ruth / Skyline Music - 866-531-2172 x102 / www.skylineonline.com

DREW EMMITT - mandolin/vocals

BILL NERSHI - guitar/vocals

ANDY THORN - banjo/vocals

TYLER GRANT - bass/vocals


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