Red Molly @ Jammin' Java

A couple years ago we heard an amazing assembly of harmonies on satellite radio which made me quickly set Red Molly as a MyJoog favorite. In fact, Red Molly is best known for their tight harmonies and was the primary reason the trio has bonded so tightly. And we made sure we listened to their 2008 release, Love and Other Tragedies, as often as possible. Yet this week was our first opportunity to see the trio perform live - at our neighborhood music venue Jammin' Java. The band is touring in support of their latest CD, James, and yes, their harmonies are still awesome. But I was also impressed with their overall sound and choice of instruments. Abbie Gardner may be the first female dobro player I've seen and Carolann Solebello plays a mean bass guitar. With Laurie MacAllister on a couple different acoustic guitars, they have a great sound - both the harmonies and the music. This evening the group started with a Darrell Scott cover, Harlan, followed by an original Honey on My Grave that includes a long dobro solo. They returned to a few more covers, Lonesome Tonight, Gillian Welch's Caleb Meyer, Len Miles' Black Flowers and Randy Weeks' Can't Let Go. Each song was excellent - I was impressed with the arrangements - they are really good musicians. But they stated their second set with their strength, an A Capella number. Wow. Then several originals including Jezebel, The Mind of a Soldier, Tear My Still House Down. Then some Steve Goodman. Their encore - another A Capella. Can't wait for Merlefest.