Singer, banjo player and percussive dancer Evie Ladin and her band are celebrating the release of two albums, and rising Appalachian-influenced duo Paper Wings will release their second album in May. The two bands will join forces for a CD release co-bill at The Palms Playhouse, on Saturday, April 6. Tickets for the 8 p.m. concert are $20 ($12 with student ID). Tenacious, innovative string musicians and dancers Evie Ladin, Keith Terry and Erik Pearson throw down an unusually entertaining live show with three-part harmony, instrumental chops and sonic surprises. In 2019 they release two CDs, celebrating both of their musical sides: one of traditional fiddle/banjo duets, and one of adventurous covers and originals. They released “Caught on a Wire” in March. The trio is grounded in old-time repertoire, and combines clever original lyrics with mature arrangements. In performances, they intermingle music and dance. The polyrhythmic heat of Ladin’s clawhammer banjo has been heard from A Prairie Home Companion to Celtic Connections, and Lincoln Center to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. Although she grew up in the cities, not mountains, of New Jersey, New York, Maryland and California, Ladin’s credits her lifetime of exposure to Southern music to her upbringing as daughter of an international folk dance teacher and an old-time folk music devotee. She has taken home ribbons in folk song from the Mount Airy, N.C. Fiddler’s Convention, and a Neo-Trad Band award from the Appalachian Stringband Festival in Clifftop, W. Va. The San Francisco Chronicle dubbed Ladin “a natural entertainer with a gift for infusing folk practices with contemporary verve.” Keith Terry (bass, percussion, body music, vocals) is a renowned percussionist and rhythm dancer, and the founder of the International Body Music Festival. Keith brings a cinematic ear to playing bass as tonal percussion, with bells, box, body and toys. Erik Pearson (guitar, banjo, bass, vocals) is a musician’s musician and also plays with the Crooked Jades, storyteller Diane Ferlatte, and his solo projects. His original banjo tune “Fork & File” was the soundtrack for a rapids rafting scene in Sean Penn’s movie “Into the Wild.” Paper Wings’ music is at once delicate, powerful and refreshingly intimate. The vocal harmonies of Emily Mann and Wilhelmina Frankzerda soar over a rotating cast of banjo, guitar, and fiddles. The two blossoming songwriters weave traditional Appalachian music into their thoughtfully crafted songs, leaving listeners feeling both nostalgic and exhilarated. Not only are they both accomplished multi-instrumentalists, they also take on the honorable task of keeping the rich history of acoustic music alive. Frankzerda credits include winning the National Twin Fiddle Championship and performing on the Grand Ol’ Opry. When she was just 17 years old, she released her first self-produced album of all original songs in collaboration with chamber-grass trio The Bee Eaters. She is also currently touring with Joy Williams (formerly of four-time Grammy Award-winning Americana duo The Civil Wars). Mann has toured with Darol Anger’s Furies, performed with Laurie Lewis, and is a current touring member of old-time string-band The Crooked Jades. Paper Wings’ self-titled debut album was released in February 2017. Their second album, “Clementine,” will come out in May. Tickets are available at Pacific Ace Hardware in Winters, Armadillo Music in Davis, Davids’ Broken Note in Woodland, online via The Palms’ website and Eventbrite, and at the door if not sold out. For more information, visit palmsplayhouse.com, evieladin.com and paperwingsmusic.com.]]>
Appalachian-influenced Evie Ladin Band, Paper Wings in CD release co-bill at The Palms on Saturday, April 6
