Review: Yonder @ HOB Boston

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After a fairly straightforward Belle Parker, they performed one of Mr. Johnston’s banjo tunes, Maid of the Canyon. The song is classic yee-haw Yonder: lightning-fast, virtuosic demonstrations of picking by the treble-range instruments, and impossible to stay still during. Adam Aijala pulls out a rich and full sound from his guitar, regardless of how briefly he may actually be on each note (which can be quite brief, considering the speed at which he takes some of his solos).

Johnston’s rhythm is impeccable, keeping a constant stream of time while consistently providing harmonic information to the rest of the band, even during improvisation. Austin plays chords such that the sound is cut almost as soon as it is emitted, but they’re well-voiced and confidently struck, seldom producing a muddled sound. And, of course, Kaufmann’s bass provides the essential musical foundation that allows all of this to go on above him.

Easily the first set’s highlight was a 12 minute rendition of Kentucky Mandolin. The band brought the opening duo of Danny Barnes and Mike Bubb (banjo and bass, respectively) on stage for some extensive improvisation on the well-traveled tune. Barnes looked like he was having the time of his life, looking out into the crowd with a huge smile on his face while Austin shouted “Danny boy!” in encouragement. Rather than lugging a second upright onto the stage, Kaufmann and Bubb simply swapped use of the one instrument every verse or so. And then, as if that weren’t impressive enough, the two gave a little demonstration on four-handed bass, Bubb providing the low register while Kaufmann soloed up top.

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Everyone in the crowd rode the wave of music in perfect sync with the band, fueled by gregarious banter in between songs. It came to a head in On The Run, during which the band slowly ground to a halt, quickly picking up into Pockets before segueing back into On The Run to finish things off.

The second set would prove to be a raucous hoedown, but it started off decidedly mid-tempo with No Expectations, the band really taking their time to open it up, jam for a good chunk of time, and let everyone settle back into the groove. Nothing flashy, just some pleasant bluegrass noodling. From here, though, things started to pick up – the faster-tempo songs of Red Bird and If Loving You Is Killing Me sandwiched themselves on either side of Bob Dylan’s It Takes A Lot To Laugh, Takes A Train To Cry.

The last 35 minutes or so of the set was nothing less than a barrage of songs, improv and furious dancing from the audience. Ramblin’ In The Rambler got the proceedings underway, the band stopping for shots, as is their MO. The song didn’t end so much as taper off into some more banter with the audience, but things picked back up with In The Seam, a warm bliss-out that led into Snow On The Pines. The tempo ramped up about halfway through as Johnston’s fingers blazed across his poor fretboard before making way for one of Austin’s trademark scat solos.

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From there, the band slowed down a bit and worked their way into Girlfriend Is Better. The song opens up nicely for some jamming, but it’s a bit slow-paced, and pulled back the momentum that had been built from the previous two songs. It wasn’t long before Girlfriend morphed into the beginning of Freebird’s guitar solo, which in turn gave way to the ending of Pines. The band brought everything back full-circle to close out the show, reprising Rambler, bringing the house down about as much as a bluegrass band can. For an encore they performed They Love Each Other, as well as another Dylan cover, Spanish Harlem Incident. Needless to say, everyone left a little sore in the legs and thankful for the burst of cold October air that hit upon exiting the venue.

Frankly, it’s hard not to have fun at a Yonder Mountain String Band show. Bluegrass is just infectious in its energy and heart, and the virtuosity of each member means there’s no shortage of musical gymnastics to witness. They work more familiar covers into their sets, and vary song structure often enough to keep things fresh: one song will be an indulgent bout of improv, while the next will showcase some vocal harmonies and little else. This is a band that is clearly grateful and true to their fans, and so long as they keep that up, Yonder can do no wrong.

Words: Eli Badra
Images: S. Balaji Mani

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Yonder Mountain String Band
October 16, 2009
House of Blues
Boston, MA

Set 1: Good Hearted Woman, Belle Parker, Maid Of The Canyon, Amanda Rose, See You Coming Round The Bend, Brown Mountain Light, *#Kentucky Mandolin, *Death Trip, Easy Come Easy Gone, Dreams> On The Run> Pockets> On The Run

Set 2: No Expectations, Red Bird, It Takes A Lot To Laugh It Takes A Train To Cry, If Loving You Is Killing Me, Hit Parade Of Love, Honestly, Looking Back Over My Shoulder, If There’s Still Ramblin In The Rambler> In The Seam> Snow On The Pines> Girlfriend IS Better> Snow On The Pines> Boatman> Ramblin Reprise
Encore: They Love Each Other, Spanish Harlem Incident
Comment: *= Danny Barnes on banjo & vocals, #=Mike Bub on bass
[via Setlist.com]

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