$20 General Admission

21+

JESSYE DESILVA & THE GODLESS HEATHENS

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Jessye DeSilva (they/she) infuses hope into their Americana-tinged songs about religious alienation, mental health struggles, and societal injustice to create a uniquely queer and unholy ruckus. Their new album Renovations (July 2023) follows their ‘70s-rock-influenced 2022 release Landscapes, which earned them a nomination for Americana Artist of the Year at the 2022 Boston Music Awards. Her ability to seamlessly blend theatrical pop elements with the traditions of folk and roots music prompted No Depression to declare “Comparisons to Elton John and Brandi Carlile are easy — DeSilva clearly takes a page from these idols, anchoring their songs in pop melody juggernauts, gauzy textures, and vocal bravado.” American Songwriter has said their “catalog doesn’t skimp on razor-sharp lyrics, paired frequently with an almost ethereal vocal,” and recently Nashville Scene named her a 2023 Artist To Watch, saying “DeSilva could inject new life into a genre that could definitely use a little more pretzel logic.”

PHIL AND THE FLYING LEAP

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Phil and the Flying Leap twists and re-imagines music across multiple genres of classic American song spanning Vaudeville to Nashville to Somerville and everywhere in-between.

Songwriter Phil Berman's melodies and lyrics usher the Great American Songbook into the 21st century, while lush arrangements and virtuosic musicianship from violinist Rachel Panitch and bassist Forrest Pettengill offer vibrant live performances full of heart, joy, and rich vocals.

The group released their debut album Play the Part in 2021. The 13-track LP wrestles with questions of work, worth, purpose, and the heart in the age of the Great Resignation, weaving together folk, jazz, musical theater, rock, and French chanson. Streaming on all platforms.

JAKE BLOUNT

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Jake Blount (pronounced: blunt) is an award-winning interpreter of Black folk music based in Providence, RI. Initially recognized for his skill as a string band musician, Blount has charted an unprecedented, Afrofuturist course on his pilgrimage through sound archives and song collections. In his hands, the banjo, fiddle, electric guitar and synthesizer become ceremonial objects used to channel the insurgent creativity of his forebears. From transfixing solo sets to full-band festival appearances complete with crowd-surfing and ecstatic chants, Blount’s performances - like his recent Smithsonian Folkways release, The New Faith - seamlessly merge centuries-old traditional songs with the trappings and techniques of modern Black genres. This “genrequeer” approach to the traditions has earned his music a place in the very same archives from which he extracts his repertoire. In defiance of genre categories, revisionist histories and linear time, Blount fashions an “Afrofuturist folklore” that disintegrates the boundaries between acoustic and electric, artist and medium, and ancestor and progeny.

Balancing his taste for arcane source material with his desire to reach diverse audiences, Blount has shared his music at venues including the Kennedy Center, Newport Folk Festival, the Library of Congress and NPR’s Tiny Desk. His knowledge and skill have deepened over the course of his still-young career, and his vision has grown more ambitious - but his music has only grown in popular appeal. Blount’s debut solo record, Spider Tales, was ranked among the best of 2020 by outlets including Bandcamp and The New Yorker. NPR, The Guardian, Rolling Stoneand more named The New Faith one of the best roots releases of 2022. With the Steve Martin Banjo Prize, two International Folk Music Awards nominations and two first-place ribbons from Clifftop already under his belt, Blount’s star continues to rise.

Blount’s thoughtful musicianship has made him a sought-after collaborator. He has contributed to recordings by Adia Victoria, Dave Hause, Adeem The Artist and others, opened for GRAMMY-winners Rhiannon Giddens and Molly Tuttle, and traveled the world as a member of old-time groups Tui and The Moose Whisperers. He regularly shares the stage with skilled contemporaries such as Mali Obomsawin, George Jackson, Nic Gareiss, Laurel Premo, and Tatiana Hargreaves.

In addition to his public-facing achievements, Blount has an impressive industry track record. He has performed as an official showcase artist at Folk Alliance International, SXSW, AmericanaFest and the International Bluegrass Music Association’s World of Bluegrass. He was a 2020 Strathmore Artist In Residence, and participated in the IBMA’s Leadership Bluegrass program in the same year. An emeritus board member of Bluegrass Pride, Blount is known as a strong advocate for progressive causes within the music industry, and appears regularly on conference panels pertaining to social and environmental justice. His writings on music and issues facing the industry have appeared in publications including Rolling Stone, NPR, Paste Magazineand No Depression.

Blount is also a skilled educator. In addition to his on-stage offerings, his engagements frequently include lectures and presentations pertaining to both his original research and the history of Black string band music. He has shared this work at Yale University, Berklee College of Music, the Smithsonian Institution and elsewhere. He also makes regular appearances at music camps, most notably Earful of Fiddle Music & Dance Camp, offering hands-on instruction in fiddle and banjo. In the fall of 2023, Blount will begin working toward a Ph.D. in Musicology and Ethnomusicology from Brown University.

Blount performs on a five-string fiddle made by Nathaniel Rowan, and banjos from Seeders Instruments and Renan Banjos. His CV is available here

General Admission

A very limited number of bar stools and  table seats are available on a first come first served basis

There is a one drink minimum per show *standing*

There is a two drink minimum per show *seated*

TERMS & CONDITIONS: By entering Rockwood Music Hall, you voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and relinquish Rockwood Music Hall from any and all liability. Please note these guidelines are subject to change at any time, without notice.