King Wilkie: new directions

This year's programme at the Appalachian and Bluegrass Music Festival at Omagh is topped by the Steep Canyon Rangers, who won the IBMA Emerging Artist Award in 2006. Two years ago, the Festival's bill-toppers were King Wilkie, who had won the same award in 2004.

The Bluegrass Blog quotes an interview by journalist Mario Tarradell in the Dallas Morning News last Monday (23 July) with Reid Burgess of King Wilkie, focusing on the change of direction in the band's latest CD, Low Country suite, on which the instrumentation includes piano, organ, cello, harmonica, pedal steel, percussion, and a marxophone. Reid Burgess emphasises that it was love of bluegrass that brought the band together, and that their new stance evolved from this: 'To me it's just a question of doing it well. We just tried to do it the most natural way and keep that spirit. Not trying to ape anybody.'

See the story here.