The Turnpike Troubadours have always been a band graced by a fervent, and frankly, gossipy fans base that will take any kernel of information about the band and make it go megaviral before breakfast.
There are many festivals out there now catering to independent country and Americana. But in three short seasons and amid a pandemic, Under The Big Sky Fest has quickly made the case for being the biggest and most important of all off the strength of its lineups.
Call them bluegrass. Call them folk or Americana. Call them whatever you want, but when Trampled By Turtles take the stage, something magical happens that’s hard to quantify. They grab your attention with amazing instrumentation normally only reserved for bluegrass.
The best bands don’t begin as business ventures. They begin as groups of friends who get together to play a little music, and end up melding so well there’s no other choice but to start playing that music for others. Similarly, their success is organic, almost accidental. Even they may not know know it all happened exactly.
There will be more music from the dynamic and much-loved string band Trampled By Turtles, which is music to the ears of their fervent fan base in Minnesota and beyond. Trampled by Turtles reunited at a cabin in Minnesota in the fall of 2017 to see what would happen, and if the time was right to move forward with the project.
I don’t blame Dave Simonett for wanting to take some time away from what has been his main gig for 15 years as the frontman of the bluegrass-esque Trampled By Turtles. As stellar of a collective of musicians as Trampled By Turtles is, at some point the experience of a string band is going to feel limiting to someone who is a songwriter first.
Maybe you came for the speed, but you stayed for the songs. It’s hard to believe that the bluegrass-esque band from Duluth, MN has been around for going on 14 years, but in that time Trampled By Turtles amassed a strong fan base in Minnesota and beyond, and released eight records, including their latest ‘Wild Animals’ from 2014.