Denver – Swallow Hill is proud to present five of the top five roots bands in Colorado on Friday, January 12 at 8 p.m. All of them are Swallow Hill Tuft Theatre veterans, and in August 2006, they were the Swallow Hill Folk Festival's biggest draws. It won't get any better than this, at the New Roots Music Celebration!

BOULDER ACOUSTIC SOCIETY
We’re excited to have Boulder Acoustic Society (BAS) as part of the New Roots Music Celebration. BAS are not only a group of young, extraordinarily gifted multi-instrumentalist performers; they write music that demonstrates both their love of traditional music and infuse it with their own style, a rare combination. With an energetic, expert mix of musical chops and unique instrumentation Aaron Keim (double bass, ukulele, banjo, vocals), Brad Jones (guitar, ukulele, vocals), Scott Higgins (marimba, snare drum, percussion) and Kailin Yong (violin, mandolin, ukulele, vocals) are taking the acoustic music scene by storm. They have performed all over the country, played a showcase at the 2005 South By Southwest Music conference in Austin, won second place at the 2006 Telluride Bluegrass Festival, presented their own Annual Harvest Moon Hot Jazz Jubilee and have played all over Swallow Hill including the Café, the 2006 Summer Picnic Concert Series and the Swallow Hill Folk Festival. The crowd at the 2006 Folk Festival loved BAS so much that the band was asked to do a then unheard of, encore performance at the end of the night! BAS brought down the house. Both their early set and the encore set prompted audience members to get up and dance and shower the band with hoots and hollers at the end of each song. If this is any indication, Boulder Acoustic Society will be big stars next time you look.

MEDINA
Medina thrilled the Swallow Hill audience at the 2006 Folk Festival. After amazing audience members with their instrumental prowess and the powerhouse vocals of Tony Medina, the crowd to clamored for CDs. Alas, Medina does not have a CD out yet. They can still be enjoyed live incorporating the best of their enthralling stage presence with their jam band format. Thus it comes as no surprise that they were asked to participate in the New Roots Music Celebration. Medina formed as each member met through working at local music stores, and playing at open stages. They are more of an event, than just a band. Tony has hosted open stages around town, and has been able to provide local musicians with the inspiration and support to procure their own songwriting. To Medina he brings the same inspiration and value. Shon is currently one of the busiest guitar/bass teachers in Denver. His love and passion for music is apparent in Medina, with the way he performs and approaches the instrument. James' inviting style and solid jazz/blues approach gave his keyboards a perfect place in the music of Medina. With Dave on vocals and bass, Medina immediately became a musical force, with the vocals now in at least three parts, guitars expertly placed, drums paving the road with keys and bass guitar rounding out the group. All styles, genres, and audiences will find something not found in other bands: great music, friends and an honest organic chemistry.

STRAY DOG
Stray Dog returned to us with their self-titled debut CD over the summer, performing their own Café concert, followed by an energizing concert to a one of the largest crowds for our own picnic series. They also performed a set at the Swallow Hill Folk Fest that elicited hoots and even “barks” from the audience. It should come as no surprise that Swallow Hill asked Stray Dog back as part of our New Roots Music Celebration. This engaging Denver-based band brings their own refreshing selection of original acoustic tunes to the stage with each performance along with adding traditional favorites to the mix. A blending of Irish, folk, blues, and bluegrass performed with the powerhouse vocals of Anne Zinschlag, and the multi-instrumental skills of Eric Woods, Will Cottrell and Jeff Hooton on guitar, bass, accordion, mandolin and banjo. Drawing upon a diverse musical appreciation, instrumentation and background the band claims, “People find our music uplifting. We have a great time playing together and our audience feeds off this.”

WADIRUM
Wadirum plays their own brand of folk acoustic-electric tunes that expertly blend jazz, folk and funk showcasing fine instrumental skill and powerful vocals. They have created a unique sound all their own. It is only natural that Swallow Hill invited them to be a part of the New Roots Music Celebration. Hyperactive Music magazine calls Wadirum’s sound “folk music with a flourish.” And Riff magazine says, “These guys can really play. They have a true sense of improvisation, not just in the jazz sense, but within the folk genre they are playing in as well.” Indie Acoustic Project chose Wadirum’s debut CD as a finalist for “Best CDs of 2005” and the Boulder Daily Camera calls Wadirum, “A rarity among Boulder musicians.” Westword magazine proclaims of the band, “Artists with great potential who show deftness and flexibility in their varying voices.” Repeat performers at Swallow Hill, Wadirum recently played at the 2006 Swallow Hill Folk Festival to an enthusiastic crowd causing a number of audience members to comment on not only the skill of the musicians but the quality of the music that they turned out. The Yellow Scene praises, “This unique quartet plays a blend of funk-infused folk, which, as clever as it reads, doesn't really capture the bands' sound. Jazzy acoustic-electric lounge music? Forget it. You'll have to come up with your own catchy label. Make sure it includes Jill Pilon's tremendous voice control and ability to sustain powerful high notes, Erlich's playful ease with his guitars and his textured tenor voice that matches harmoniously with Jill. Don't forget Lisa Haney's soulful cello chords and Varner's steady bass.”

ZEBRA JUNCTION
Zebra Junction is one of the most unique bands to perform on Swallow Hill’s stages, incorporating unusual and rare instrumentation such as Flitz’s 1929 Gibson Banjo Ukulele, Micah’s Playskool tape player scratch box, a toy piano, vocal processors and a makeshift bucket-drum along with more standard instrumentation such as harmonicas, guitars, bass and of course the incredible talent of the band members. Together the multi-instrumentalist duo creates a wild, out of the box, creative sound that is much bigger than the sum of their parts. Like nothing else currently being performed, their sound has been praised by Kaitlyn Curtin of radio 1190 in Boulder as a “fierce swirl of creativity threading together down-home simplicity with danceable grooves.” Their latest CD, Waterborne, is receiving much critical acclaim. Eric Dyce of Red Rocks calls the CD a “must-have piece of art,” and Zak Phillips of KCUV claims, “Zebra Junction's Waterborne is what Pink Floyd would have sounded like if they grew up in the backwoods of West Virginia ... I like it!”

For tickets visit www.swallowhillmusic.org or call (303) 777-1003. Discounts are available for Swallow Hill members.

About Swallow Hill Music Association:
Helping people make music since 1979, Swallow Hill Music Association is one of the largest institutions of its kind in the United States as a source for folk, roots and acoustic music. With more than 2,100 members—some of whom are also volunteers—, Swallow Hill provides a place to celebrate music that is rarely heard elsewhere in the Rocky Mountain Region. Three concert venues house more than 150 performances a year, featuring some of the world's great artists as well as up-and-coming new talent. The Julie Davis Music School at Swallow Hill provides a valuable and affordable extra-curricular educational resource to the community with more than 50 music instructors involved in more than 240 adult classes and 70 children's classes annually.

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