This week, Kaleidoscope host Juliet Fromholt hosted a live studio session with two bluegrass acts from the Cab Grass Bluegrass Festival, which takes place at Dayton’s Yellow Cab Tavern on Saturday, September 2, 2023. 5-piece string band the Shady Pine and Benjamin Luckhaupt of My Brother’s Keeper played live on the show, and spoke with Juliet about the upcoming festival.
The Shady Pine performed first. The band features Max Nunery on guitar and vocals, Rob Spahr on bass, Jason Clemons on mandolin, Robbie Marion on fiddle and vocals, and Kevin Crestos on banjo. The band played several songs live on air, including originals and covers. The band members also spoke about forming The Shady Pine, which got its start in Miamisburg.
Nunery, who fronts the group, also organized Saturday’s Cab Grass Bluegrass Festival. In the interview, he spoke about organizing the festival, which features the Henhouse Prowlers, Buffalo Wabs & The Price Hill Hustle, The Repeating Arms, Comet Bluegrass All-Stars, My Brother's Keeper, and The Goldsberrys, as well as his own band, the Shady Pine. The event will represent a range of bluegrass styles, Nunery said, from traditional to contemporary:
“That’s what’s good about bluegrass—you have your traditional, your gospel, but you also have your modern stuff, like Billy Strings, or the Hen House Prowlers, for that matter. I wanted to have a little bit of everything. The Henhouse Prowlers are definitely a progressive bluegrass band. Then we have the Comet Bluegrass All Stars, and they’re as traditional as they come… I tried to pick bands that are steller to see live, and bands that I would want to see together.”
Next, Benjamin Luckhaupt performed several songs live on acoustic guitar. Luckhaupt is one member of My Brother’s Keeper, a Cincinnati-based bluegrass band that will also perform this Saturday at Yellow Cab. The band released their latest album, Field Guide, in May. Luckhaupt discussed why Southwest Ohio developed a rich bluegrass tradition:
“Because people from deep in Appalachia moved to this area for work, or they broke down on their way to Detroit, and we got so much bluegrass in our region. Getting to play at festivals in this region with great bands – a lot of them are our friends – is one of my favorite experiences.”
The Cab Grass Bluegrass Festival takes place on September 2 from 1:00pm to 11:30pm.The event is family friendly; kids 10 years and under enter for free. In addition to music, the festival features food trucks, wristbands, and a beard contest with a cash prize. Tickets are available for $27 in advance and $37 at the doors. For more information, visit cabgrass.com.
