"Original", "innovative", "fearless", "ambitious", "propulsive", "a marvel of emotion and razor sharp focus"....these are the words of those that have had a chance to hear the sound that for the past several years has been reverberating out of Texas from one of American music's most compelling bands, Cadillac Sky. Their music has been coined everything from "experimental acoustic music" to "psychobilly bluegrass" but they themselves, simply hope they just make "good" music. With an admitted dose of naivety, they simply choose to believe that there should be only two categories in which music should be placed: good and bad. "We try to make music we believe in and would like to listen to".
Belying their bluegrass instrumentation that imitates that of the original "Bluegrass Boys", their music looks as much to Radiohead and the Beatles for inspiration as it does to Bill Monroe. The 14 original songs, all written by the band, on their stellar sophomore release for Skaggs Family Records, "Gravity's Our Enemy", embody this ideal. Take for example a song like “My Precious Waltz/I Hate How Happy She Is.” It begins with long mournful notes from the emotional violin of Ross Holmes accompanied by the eery whistle of a musical saw, sounding almost like Andrew Bird or gypsy-punkers DeVotchKa, before the virtuositic banjo-picking of Matt Menefee suddenly kicks in and the passionate wail of lead singer Bryan Simpson begins heaping scorn on an ex-lover as the merciless groove supplied by Andy "The Panda" Moritz's upright bass leads everyone around. But somehow even though they draw inspiration from many far-reaching corners of creativity they manage to create a sound that is completely Cadillac Sky. A sound that rejects the straitjacket of labeling and instead looks to make transcendent music and ultimately to paint its masterpiece.
But that being said, the boys ever-increasing following solemnly attests to the fact that the ferocity and grace that are the staples of Cadillac Sky are best understood when witnessed first hand. Folkwax wrote about a recent live performance " they completely blew me away, they were jogging around on the top of their strings, sniffing out new territory with rampant curiosity." Obviously, the relationship between artist and audience can change from night to night. But it does not take even the most lethargic of audiences long to be propelled to their feet with enthusiasm once they start to feel the transfer of honest energy that occurs everytime Cadillac Sky takes the stage. "We try to have every show be it's own entity. We want every show to be live, literally. We want the audience to see the show breathing in front of their eyes. So although we use a lot of detailed arrangements, we leave plenty of room in our songs for improvisation. I think early on in each show the audience recognizes their witnessing something that may never happen again, and that's pretty cool." And with recent addition, David Mayfield, whose guitar playing and vocals have shared the stage with such musical luminaries as The Avett Brothers and The Black Keys, and whose stage persona is perhaps quantified best as a poetic-demolition derby, the band has pushed past the boiling point.
The five sincere young men that make up Cadillac Sky, Bryan, Matt, Ross, Panda, and David, realize that people remember moments...when they look back on their life, they will not remember the days, but the moments in their life. Cadillac Sky is a musical unit that strives with every note recorded, every show performed, to create moments that will be remembered and music that will last.
hey guys !! i just wanted to stop by and say THANK YOU SO MUCH for gracing roanoke with your amazing talent :) hope to see yall here again some time soon!!
Saw you all at the Station Inn in Nashville the other night. I just wanted to say how great you all were & most importantly say that Bryan is a very brave man for saying what he said about God in an atmosphere like that. God bless you guys for the message you put out there!
I got VERY GOOD NEWS to SHARE with yous. Thanks to a friend of mine, I AM GOING TO BE ABLE TO GO TO THE SSOMF HOUSE SHOW on July 24th! She got me a ticket to the House Show for that night! I look forward to meeting all of yous. Have a good and blessed rest of the day. :)=^..^=
I just saw you guys in roanoke!!! we just stumbled upon your show and it was fantastic!!! before you started you said there are still some people coming in come on in...THAT WAS ME! you guys were great!!!!!
Hi Cadillac Sky, just heard the song "Weary Angel" and it touched me very much. Having just had minor surgery and going through the healing process,it deals with having strength even when tired or weary.Thank-yous for an excellent song and God Bless.
Hey you guys, I just got your summer newsletter. Tre tre EXCITING!!!! Congratulations on the new album, sounds like it's going to be freaking amazing. I can speak on behalf of all my friends and family who were at the Soiled Dove in February, (some of whom aren't even really blue grass fans) when I say that we were all blown away. Looking forward to an album that represents the magic of your live show:o) Cheers! julia
Thanks for the SICK show back in Ft. Collins! And my "personalized" poster! You guys are too much. Can't wait to see y'all in the fall! You should stop just north of Ft. Collins in Cheyenne next time..... THIS PLACE NEEDS MUSIC!!
Guys, We just got back from Telluride and can't wait for you to get back to Ft. Wprth for another performance! Congrats on the new CD! Wish we could see you again soon!
Hey Guys! Lovin' the new tunes! I can't wait to hear you guys at SnowShoe over the July 4th weekend. Watching and listening to you guys record the "Blind Man Walking" CD in Nashville was one of the most memorable experiences of my life! Keep up the good work and GREAT music!
"The Comfort Zone" on CMR Nashville (broadcast from the UK) LISTEN LIVE Tuesday 23rd June 2009 UK (BST) : 4pm-6pm, repeated 10pm-midnight USA (EST): 11am-1pm, repeated 5pm-7pm & 11pm-1pm Wednesday 24th June 2009 UK (BST) : 4am-6am repeated 10am-Noon USA (EST): 5am-7am Sunday 28th June 2009 UK (BST) : 2pm-4pm USA (EST): 9am-11am _____________________________________________
Just an idea here. Why don't you pick one fan a month to add to your top ten friends list. You could start with me! LOL Can't wait to see yall at Bristol's Rhythm & Roots. I've had my weekend pass for months now. Maybe I'll see you before then!
