Knickerbockers Trampled By Turtles! There Were No Survivors!

Trampled By Turtles

Actually I think everyone survived. It was another cold, rainy night in Lincoln, NE. The stage was set for a great bluegrass show at Knickerbockers. It was April 9, 2008 and the rustic bar was filling in with anticipation of the two acts from Duluth, MN. First up we had Charlie Parr, followed shortly there after by Trampled By Turtles. This ended up being a wonderful one-two punch, as both acts complemented each other nicely.

Full review after the jump folks!

Charlie Parr has been in the music scene since his debut CD entitled Criminals and Sinners. He is well known, particularly in the Minnesota area, for putting on an authentic folk/bluegrass show including a variety of his own music, as well as many of the classic tunes that you folks are used to. His unique sound is much attributed to his raspy, yet beautiful voice. During our stint with Mr. Parr, he rotated between a resonator and banjo. Don't get me wrong, Parr's banjo skills are more than adequate, but the sweet sound of that resonator is what I believe made many Lincolnites fans of Parr by the night's end. His melodic, relaxed show was the perfect opener for the next act, who would take us down the same road as Parr, just in a completely different direction.

Charlie Parr

Charlie Parr

Trampled By Turtles are no strangers to Knickerbockers. Over the past few years, these guys have hit up this local music spot three times. Each time, they seem to pick up just a little bit more steam in the area than the previous time. This time was no different. While waiting for the show to begin, I noticed the presence of five chairs on stage. I figured Parr would be joining them and was then curious to see how his traditional style would mix with TBT's fast-paced sound. Unfortunately Parr's presence was kept only in the crowd, but the motive for the fifth chair was sure to please. TBT had come back with a new addition. Added to the extremely talented roster was Ryan Young on the fiddle.

Dave Carroll, Dave Simonett and Tim Saxhaug of Trampled By Turtles

The night featured much of the same as this crowd was used to with this act. As folks herded together on the dance floor, you could tell you were in for a sweaty, dance-filled night. TBT quickly started out with a few fast-paced songs that seemed to be showcasing Young's fiddle ability. They then moved on to a few slower songs, and this trend would continue throughout the night. Several times, just as it seemed the place was near implosion, TBT would take it down a notch to give us all some recovery time. After a short break, they returned for round two.

Dave Simonett

This set started out much mellower, as the crowd was still filling in from their set break expeditions, but it soon became the epicenter for intensity. Even though it was 40 degrees and pouring rain outside, Knickerbockers felt like a rain forest. The amount of heat and humidity produced by the gyrating population was almost unbearable at times. I don' think that bothered a single soul in there that night.

Erik Berry and Ryan Young of Trampled By Turtles

After two hour-long sets and a single song encore, the Turtles were finished and the night was over. The addition of Young on the fiddle proved to be an excellent idea for them. It led to a balls-out night from the group which I felt was particularly evident on the song "I'm a Target Too" off of their album Blue Sky and the Devil. These guys seem to have it together.

Ryan Young

Both acts put on a great show, although they took completely different approaches on a similar breed of music. Parr's conventional style was well-received by the crowd, most of whom were there to shake their asses to the up-tempo Turtles. I was glad that so many people turned out on a Wednesday night for the show. Hopefully it will keep good acts coming to Lincoln. And if history really does repeat itself, we'll see them back before too long. Also, look for TBT at the Rothbuty Festival going on in Rothbury, MI on July 3rd through the 6th.

Ryan Young and Dave Carroll

For a traditional one man bluegrass/folk act I give Charlie Parr 6.75/10 slices.

For a consistently boisterous night filled with many of good times, and the addition of a wonderful fiddle player to compliment an already brilliant group, I give TBT 8.2858/10 slices.

Stay toasty,
The Toastman