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THE INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS
RELEASE NEW FULL-LENGTH ALBUM
LAWS OF GRAVITY
“LAWS OF GRAVITY” TOUR KICKED OFF LAST NIGHT
AND RUNS THROUGH APRIL
Artwork for Laws Of Gravity by Scott McCormick / Hi-res available here
STREAM LAWS OF GRAVITY NOW ON SPOTIFY
WATCH “GRAVITY” MUSIC VIDEO
“…the quintet returns to the rootsy sound they have cultivated for over a decade…it’s the melodies of tracks such as the introspective ‘Soul Searching,’ perhaps the disc’s thematic centerpiece, that advance the Stringdusters a few steps ahead of the competition…There’s plenty to be said for a band of veterans playing in top form, pleasing an established audience with tight tunes and interaction honed over hundreds of live dates…one of their finest sets of new material.”
–Hal Horowitz, American Songwriter, 1/6/17
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Progressive Bluegrass virtuosos THE INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS have returned with Laws Of Gravity, a new full-length album out today, January 13, on Compass Records. The 13-track collection celebrates a return to form for the Grammy-nominated acoustic five-piece, whose widely acclaimed 2016 album Ladies & Gentlemen featured all female singers (such as Joss Stone, Lee Ann Womack, Nicki Bluhm, etc).
Stream Laws Of Gravity now on Spotify and watch the music video for the album’s focus track “Gravity,” which offers a look into the band recording in studio.
THE INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS—Andy Hall (dobro), Andy Falco (guitar), Chris Pandolfi (banjo), Jeremy Garrett (fiddle), and Travis Book (upright bass)–recorded Laws Of Gravity in Nashville and co-produced it with Billy Hume (Ludacris, Ying Yang Twins). “This is an important record for us, coming off the Ladies & Gentlemen project,” says Falco. “That album exposed us to a lot of new fans and we toured so hard this year, it really feels like a great time in the history of the band. We think Laws Of Gravity is a quintessential Stringdusters record, and that all facets of the group are represented on the album in a cohesive way.”
Book adds, “A return to form is one way to put it. We’re returning to the starting point but the starting point has really shifted. In a lot of ways, more experiences together, traveling, touring for a decade and also this last phase of Ladies & Gentlemen and all the collaborations have opened new ways of approaching the music so it feels like the band is still really moving forward.”
The band–hailed for their incomparably tight yet improvisation-infused live shows–are poised to build on their growing fan base and momentum. They have won four International Bluegrass Music Association awards, earned a “Best Country Instrumental” Grammy nomination in 2011 and garnered widespread critical acclaim.
2016 was filled with several unique and notable highlights in the band’s 10+ year career. At their first-ever headlining show at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre, the band was joined by special guests Lee Ann Womack and Nicki Bluhm. Rolling Stone debuted a performance video of “Run To Heaven;” check it out here. Additionally, the Stringdusters were invited to back Ryan Adams at both the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and the Newport Folk Festival, where, with Nicki Bluhm, they all jammed a cover of Dio’s “Holy Diver” (watch it here) and again for a performance of Adams’ classic “Oh My Sweet Carolina” on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” Watch here. Another 2016 milestone was sharing the stage with Grateful Dead’s Phil Lesh as part of his Phil & Friends set at the Lockn’ Festival, where they jammed with Anders Osborne, Joe Russo, Phish’s Jon Fishman and Page McConnell as well as Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi.
With no signs of slowing, 2017 is on track to be their busiest year yet. THE INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS kicked off their “Laws Of Gravity” national headlining tour last night in Raleigh, NC and will take the stage tonight in Asheville, NC. The extensive tour will keep the band out on the road through April and will include several festival appearances including Gem & Jam Festival, Winter WonderGrass and the Treefort Music Festival, as well as Mountain Jam, Electric Forest, and others to be announced, for this summer. See below for a list of all “Laws Of Gravity” tour dates.
What’s being said about Laws of Gravity:
“Written in the middle of the most divisive, damaging presidential election in recent memory, ‘This Ol’ Building,’ the lead-off single from the Infamous Stringdusters’ upcoming album Laws of Gravity, finds the Virginia-based bluegrass band ringing a warning bell, hoping to startle all unengaged listeners out of their stupor…mixing the Infamous Stringdusters’ arsenal of unplugged instruments – guitar, Dobro, upright bass, banjo and fiddle – with an implied beat that stomps and swaggers…The highlight, though, is the song’s a cappella outro, which finds bandmates Andy Hall, Andy Falco, Chris Pandolfi, Jeremy Garrett and Travis Book piling their voices into harmonized stacks. As the pattern repeats itself, the harmonies begin overlapping, sounding like the contemporary, minor-key cousin of the Doobie Brothers’ ‘Black Water.'”
–Robert Crawford, Rolling Stone Country, 11/17/16
“Written by Stringdusters bassist Travis Book with his wife and fellow songwriter, Sarah Siskind, ‘Gravity’ is a ‘straightforward love song’ perfectly complemented by intricate banjo melodies and sweeping fiddles. It’s the Infamous Stringdusters at their best, with all of the band’s members playing to their strengths, adding their own unique elements to a song that feels at once dynamically multilayered and pure-and-simple bluegrass…Indeed, gravity is a strong theme, not just in the Stringdusters’ new single but in their upcoming new album as a whole. Written primarily while the band was touring, Laws of Gravity is, as guitarist Andy Falco says, about life on the road as ‘musical nomads’ and the varying forces that ‘[keep] you grounded and [pull] you home.’ In that regard, ‘Gravity’ was the perfect first single, not just because it shared a word with the album’s title.”
–Carrie Horton, The Boot, 12/12/16
“It comes as no surprise that The Infamous Stringdusters latest release, Laws Of Gravity, is a perfect example of a modern bluegrass album. With the consistency and trust the band has drilled into themselves over their relentless touring schedule, they have fostered the ability to create seamless soundscapes full of peaks and valleys that echo with a presence as old as the hills. Each of the five members is among the finest practicing their respective crafts, and that united talent has evolved into something far beyond the sum of its parts…Even the most staid of purists are able to admit that what the Stringdusters are doing on albums like this and stages around the world will carry the essence of bluegrass into the future. These talented musicians might not have set out to become the standard bearers for an entire genre of music, but they did just that.”
–Rex Thomson, Live For Live Music, 1/13/17
“With their latest album, Laws of Gravity (out Jan. 13 on Compass Records), the Stringdusters push further ahead in their pursuit of bluegrass perfection. For them, it’s about learning the unknown depths of the tricky and sacred language that is bluegrass. And in an often-crowded market of dime-a-dozen groups aiming to follow in the footsteps of the legends that came before them, it’s also about finding your own unique voice and captivating identity – something the Stringdusters continue to prove each day, onstage and in the studio.”
–Garret Wooward, Smoky Mountain News, 1/11/17
“And what an offering it is. Featuring the tight jams and prominent harmonies that we have come to expect, they continue to push the newgrass envelope while offering perhaps their most bluesy and soulful album to date.”
–Caleb Calhoun, AshVegas, 1/11/17
“… this one is an absolute jaw-dropper. Over the course of 13 mesmerizing tunes that put their kickstands down firmly on the bluegrass-y landscape, the band manages to push the limits of what string band music can be; with everything from down-home multi-layered harmonies stretched across rapidly furious finger-picking, connected to countrified storytelling twangers, tethered to hoe-down worthy jam band fodder, it’s infamously extraordinary.”
–Susan Hubbard, Mother Church Pew, 1/13/17
“The Laws Of Gravity Tour:”
Laws Of Gravity track list:
THE INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS by Scott McCormick / Hi-res available here
For more info on THE INFAMOUS STRINGDUSTERS, visit:
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