Crooked Still
Encyclopedia
Crooked Still is an alternative bluegrass
band consisting of vocalist Aoife O'Donovan
, banjo
player Dr. Gregory Liszt, bassist
Corey DiMario, cellist Tristan Clarridge and fiddle
r Brittany Haas
. They are known for their high energy, technical skill, unusual instrumentation, and innovative acoustic style.
in Boston
, Massachusetts
in the spring of 2001. Former cellist Rushad Eggleston
, who was studying at Berklee College of Music
, and Liszt, a graduate student at MIT, were playing music together around the same time, and when the four met that summer, they formed a band that became Crooked Still. While its members finished school, the group played various Boston venues, growing in popularity and collecting favorable reviews from the local press, notably the The Boston Globe
, Northeast Performer, and the Boston Herald
.
In 2004, the group was invited to perform at the Newport Folk Festival
and Falcon Ridge Folk Festival
, when their debut album, Hop High, was the top-selling album . Following the success of this first festival appearance, Crooked Still went on to appear at concert halls, festivals, coffeehouses, and nightclubs in 23 states and several countries. On August 22, 2006, the group released their second album, Shaken by a Low Sound.
's Republic of Strings. The band released its first album with the new lineup, Still Crooked
in 2008, a live album in 2009, and a studio full-length, Some Strange Country, in 2010.
Progressive bluegrass
Progressive bluegrass is one of two major subgenres of bluegrass music. It is also known as newgrass, a term attributed to New Grass Revival member Ebo Walker. Musicians and bands John Hartford, New Grass Revival, J.D. Crowe and the New South, The Dillards, Boone Creek, Country Gazette, and the...
band consisting of vocalist Aoife O'Donovan
Aoife O'Donovan
Aoife O’Donovan is an American singer and songwriter. She is also the lead singer for the progressive bluegrass/string band, Crooked Still, and a member of the female folk-noir trio, Sometymes Why. Her first professional engagement was singing lead for the folk group The Wayfaring Strangers...
, banjo
Banjo
In the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
player Dr. Gregory Liszt, bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
Corey DiMario, cellist Tristan Clarridge and fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
r Brittany Haas
Brittany Haas
Brittany Haas is an American fiddle player. She is currently a member of the Boston-based alternative bluegrass band, Crooked Still. She graduated from Princeton University in 2009 and was a member of the Princeton University Band. Previously she was a member of Darol Anger's Republic of Strings...
. They are known for their high energy, technical skill, unusual instrumentation, and innovative acoustic style.
2001-2008
O'Donovan and DiMario met at the New England Conservatory of MusicNew England Conservatory of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, is the oldest independent school of music in the United States.The conservatory is home each year to 750 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate studies along with 1400 more in its Preparatory School as well as the School of...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
in the spring of 2001. Former cellist Rushad Eggleston
Rushad Eggleston
Rushad Eggleston is a contemporary improvisational cellist.Eggleston, a graduate of Carmel High School in Carmel, California, United States, played the cello as a member of the Youth Music Monterey orchestra in Monterey Bay. Later he attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts,...
, who was studying at Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
, and Liszt, a graduate student at MIT, were playing music together around the same time, and when the four met that summer, they formed a band that became Crooked Still. While its members finished school, the group played various Boston venues, growing in popularity and collecting favorable reviews from the local press, notably the The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
, Northeast Performer, and the Boston Herald
Boston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
.
In 2004, the group was invited to perform at the Newport Folk Festival
Newport Folk Festival
The Newport Folk Festival is an American annual folk-oriented music festival in Newport, Rhode Island, which began in 1959 as a counterpart to the previously established Newport Jazz Festival...
and Falcon Ridge Folk Festival
Falcon Ridge Folk Festival
The Falcon Ridge Folk Festival is an American annual folk-oriented music festival and dance festival formerly held at the Long Hill Farm in Hillsdale, New York, USA. In 2006, the event moved to nearby Dodds Farm, just off Rt. 22, five miles north of the Rt. 22/Rt. 23 intersection in Hillsdale, on...
, when their debut album, Hop High, was the top-selling album . Following the success of this first festival appearance, Crooked Still went on to appear at concert halls, festivals, coffeehouses, and nightclubs in 23 states and several countries. On August 22, 2006, the group released their second album, Shaken by a Low Sound.
From 2008
Cellist Rushad Eggleston performed his last show with the band on November 18, 2007, at the Iron Horse in Northampton, Massachusetts. He parted ways with Crooked Still to pursue his own music with band Tornado Rider. In January 2008 two new members joined the band: cellist Tristan Clarridge and fiddler Brittany Haas, both of whom have toured in Darol AngerDarol Anger
-Career:Darol Anger entered popular music at the age of 21 as a founding member of The David Grisman Quintet. Anger played fiddle to David Grisman's mandolin in The David Grisman Quintet's 1977 debut. He co-founded the Turtle Island String Quartet with David Balakrishnan in 1985 and performed,...
's Republic of Strings. The band released its first album with the new lineup, Still Crooked
Still Crooked
Still Crooked is the third album by progressive bluegrass group Crooked Still. At the end of 2007 Rushad Eggleston parted his ways with the group and was replaced by Tristan Clarridge, cellist of Darol Anger's Republic of Strings. Brittany Haas, 5-string fiddler of the same group, was added to the...
in 2008, a live album in 2009, and a studio full-length, Some Strange Country, in 2010.
2011 and beyond
In honor of their tenth anniversary together as a band, Crooked Still embarked on a major tour of the Northeast and the Pacific Northwest, and released a 7-song EP called Friends of Fall in October of 2011.Albums
| Year | Album details | US Folk Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Hop High
|
— |
| 2006 | Shaken by a Low Sound Shaken by a Low Sound Shaken by a Low Sound is the second album of progressive bluegrass group Crooked Still. With repertoire mostly consisting of traditional stuff the group sounds very original with combination of Aoife O´Donovan´s emotive vocals and the unusual banjo-cello-double bass lineup.-Track list:# "Can't You... Signature Sounds Recordings Signature Sounds Recordings is an independent record label specializing in singer-songwriter, Americana, and modern folk music. Jim Olsen and Mark Thayer founded the label in 1995 to promote the acoustic artists playing in the Northampton, Massachusetts music scene... |
— |
| 2008 | Still Crooked Still Crooked Still Crooked is the third album by progressive bluegrass group Crooked Still. At the end of 2007 Rushad Eggleston parted his ways with the group and was replaced by Tristan Clarridge, cellist of Darol Anger's Republic of Strings. Brittany Haas, 5-string fiddler of the same group, was added to the... |
— |
| 2010 | Some Strange Country
|
15 |
| 2011 | Friends of Fall
|
— |
Live-Albums
| Year | Album details | US Folk Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Crooked Still Live
|
— |
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Half of What We Know" | Grey Sky Films |