Old Gold and Black > 4.25.02 > Syndicate plays solid set to small Springfest crowd

By Tripp Mickle
Old Gold and Black Reviewer

The word "bluegrass" usually conjures up images of old-time rednecks playing fiddles and banjos in the hills of North Carolina. But in the hands of Acoustic Syndicate, it takes on a completely different color.

Over the last 10 years, the Syndicate has crafted a sound that not only shatters such stereotypes, but brings a new face to the world of bluegrass by mingling it with the music that most influenced the band: rock, jazz, funk and reggae.

The Student Union brought Acoustic Syndicate's funkified rock- and reggae-infected bluegrass to Wait Chapel April 18 for an intimate show before a small crowd of no more than 40 people.

The band kicked off the Springfest show with "Sunlight Falls" and "Crazy Town," two songs from their third album, Crazy Little Life. From there, the band rolled through several slower, new songs, including "Neighbors," that will be featured on an upcoming studio album in Nashville.

Although the show's intro featured a few crowd favorites, the band seemed to lack its trademark energy. The group wandered through "Carnival" and their reggae-fused "Walkin' in your Footsteps."

When they threw things back to their first album with a stellar rendition of "The Grind," they seemed more like themselves. From there Byron McMurry jammed on the banjo and the band went directly into "Rainbow Rollercoaster." The energy was there.

The band moved on to a killer close of the show. They finished things out with a cover of Pete Townsend's rendition of "North Country Girl," a crowd favorite, and its experimental bluegrass version of The Who's "Who Are You," which debuted at last year's Halloween show.

In the end, it was a quality show with a great set list. The band started low on momentum, and there's no doubt that it could have been a better atmosphere, but ultimately they pulled out another good one.

Acoustic Syndicate came onto the scene in 1992 with an original sound that has redefined acoustic music by combining it with gospel, reggae, rock and jazz. Since then, the band has been entertaining audiences throughout the Southeast and across country.

Brothers Fitz and Byron McMurry and their cousin Steve "Big Daddy" McMurry are the heart and soul of the group. The three were reared playing music together in the farmland of Cleveland County.

With Byron on banjo, Fitz on drums and Steve on guitar the trio developed together singing bluegrass harmonies and listening to classic bluegrass masters. When they met up with Jay Sanders, an amazing bass player from Nashville, the band was born.

The lyrical abilities of Steve and Byron, coupled with the arrangement abilities of Fitz and Sanders have allowed the band to produce a refreshing blend of original acoustic music.

The band is at its best on stage. They are currently in the process of answering fans' request for a live album.

The last song they were waiting to record was "Carnival," and at Springfest the boys announced that they were recording April 19 in Raleigh. This completes the live album, leaving the band free to begin work on a new studio release.

The most exciting news for the band, however, is the recent invitation it received to join Widespread Panic, Trey Anastasio of Phish fame, The String Cheese Incident and many others at the three-day Bonnaroo festival in Tennessee.

If anybody made the mistake of missing Acoustic Syndicate on campus, you may want to trek to Charlotte this weekend for their appearance at CityFest.

As anyone at last week's show can tell you, it's worth it.


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