“…Fiery-Folk-Funk…”
Bootleg Sunshine are “mean players… their sound is so diverse and distinct that one moment you’ll hear bluegrass you’re moving your feet to, and the next second you’re pondering if you’re catching hints of Afro-Cuban rhythms in the same song. #musicnerdproblems”
-Seattle Art Museum
These dynamic Newgrass kids put jalapeños all up in yo’ corn bread, making some damn spicy jams! It means a healthy dose of Mountain stomping, and a heavy pinch of Latin-Caribbean heat, all topped with lyrics deep like sea cucumbers, death, and scrambled eggs.
Members of Bootleg Sunshine have been orchestrally-trained, have busked in the falling snow, have performed for governors and billionaires, have given up entirely, have relearned entirely, have performed for penguins, the newly-born, the dying, the safety instruction lecture before take-off, enormous music festivals, and dingy dive bars.
Seattle newgrass-ers bring a reputation for foot-stomp’n live shows: charming you with cinematic instrumental tunes, a few Appalachain melodies, some pastoral lyrics of years yonder, and a dash of sundry musics from around the world. On stages across the Americas, Bootleg Sunshine have been growing exponentially from the Pacific Northwest with their “swank harmonies, percussive guitar, dizzying licks, and taffy-like backbeats.” Bootleg Sunshine simply delight those wanting to trip the light fantastic!
Order The debut studio EP, or “Live at Tractor Tavern” CD.
Sometimes solo, sometimes a trio, sometimes a septet with full horn section:
Led by Harold Belskus (Anaheim, CA) Guitar, vocals
Often featuring:
Ian Sides (Seattle, WA) Bass
Devin Bews (Maui, HI) Drums
Amanda Fitch (Denver, CO) Fiddle, Vocals
Martin Strand (Shelton, WA) Bass
Evan McPherson (Seattle, WA) Bass
Joe Eck (Minneapolis, MN) Drums
And more…
Check out their older, world-fusion project ‘A Cedar Suede.’
Many thanks to our friends for all the help along the way!