Demolition String Band
Friday, August 17
Show starts at 10:00
$10 cover
About Demolition String Band
With a shared passion for country, roots rock, bluegrass and mountain music Elena Skye (Chicago, Ill.) and Boo Reiners (Charlotte, N.C.) front the NYC based alt-country/Americana band Demolition String Band. Their newest CD, “Gracious Days”, was released March 6, 2012, on Los Angeles-based Varese Sarabande Records. Produced by three-time Grammy winner Steve Rosenthal (Ollabelle) “Gracious Days” features their heartfelt and inspired musical fire.
The album showcases original material by both Boo and Elena including “Misfortune”, an old timey sounding song about good times come and gone; the bluesy “Under The Weather”; “Dress Of Roses”, inspired by a dress found in a lovers closet and the instrumental “Jethro’s Lullaby”, dedicated to mandolin great Jethro Burns of the comedy duo Homer & Jethro with whom Elena studied as a young teenager. There’s also a carefully chosen collection of songs by artists who’ve had a profound effect on their music; The Ramones, Ola Belle Reed, Woody Guthrie, Blaze Foley and Mickey Newbury. Guest musicians include Tony Leone (Ollabelle), Catherine Popper (Grace Potter, Ryan Adams, Tony Rice), David Mansfield, Kenny Soule, Mike Santoro, Neil Pawley (Southside Johnny) and Lisa Gutkin (The Klezmatics).
Elena and Boo met in the independent bookstore in Hoboken, N.J., that Chicago transplant Elena co-owned and managed. They started getting together to play in the store after hours and pretty soon were hosting a local bluegrass jam that attracted players from all the over the area and inspired them to form a band.
“The name Demolition String Band came from the environment around my apartment building in Hoboken, N.J., at the time Boo and I formed the band. There was all kinds of knocking down of buildings and construction of big condo complexes to take advantage of the more upscale crowd that was moving into town. So instead of The Sunny Mountain Boys or The Coon Creek Girls we became The Demolition String Band. At first it was kind of a joke, but it stuck!” says Elena.