Jim Trace and The Makers have been performing together for over a decade. The three original members of the band, Jim Trace (banjo/vocals), Mark Szwejkowski (guitar/vocals) and Brendan O’Brien (drums), recall their first gig at, "A small, ragtag beer fest in the airfield of London [Ohio] Airport. And the sound went out one song into our first set. So we played it completely acoustic, in the middle of a field during a rainstorm."
Since those humble beginnings, the band has expanded and contracted with various players and is now a five-piece with addition of Adam Forsthoefel (guitar/mandolin/vocals) and Rob Stuckert (bass). They've also explored sonically, swinging from acoustic roots music to a more electrified indie sound. On sophomore album Mash Bill, they meet in the middle of those genre extremes.
"We learned a lot of new things when we were doing that electric phase, played a lot with a lot of new tones and different kind of sonic landscapes," said Szwejkowski "I know it's taken so long, but we got our second album and we kind of have that merging together of different stuff. We've got our little more lo fi, indie chill vibe to it, but also that upbeat stomp and shout kind of folk that's like where our roots are."
