The Dust Busters are a string band based in Brooklyn, New York. They met as part of a larger group playing with John Cohen of the New Lost City Ramblers and Peter Stampfel of the Holy Modal Rounders. The trio integrates a range of old-time songs, ballads, fiddle tunes and jug band blues into every performance. Influenced and inspired by the fusion of Scots-Irish and African music that took place in Appalachia, the Western states and the Deep South from colonial times through the World War II, they carry the music forward with authenticity and creativity. The freewheeling energy that characterized 1920s and ?30s string bands such as The Skillet Lickers, Dykes Magic City Trio, and The Mississippi Sheiks was that era?s version of today?s rock?n?roll attitude. So they?re old-time, contemporary and fun!
Still in their 20s, the Dust Busters have made two self-released recordings, and appeared at venues including Club Passim (Cambridge, MA) and Brooklyn?s Jalopy Theater (currently a hotbed of old-time music). They have played at festivals from Brooklyn to Portland (Oregon), from Clifftop to the Black Banjo Gathering, with side trips to Ireland and Bulgaria, and recently joined John Cohen on a west-coast tour that combined concerts with screenings of John?s new film about Roscoe Holcomb.
The Dust Busters are: Walker Shepard (banjo, guitar, guit-jo, fiddle); Craig Judelman (fiddle, pump organ); Eli Smith (guitar, banjo, banjo-mandolin, harmonica, autoharp, jug, spoons).
News flash: John Cohen will be joining the Dust Busters at this performance!
Come, welcome them to Washington, and be entertained!
See and hear the Dust Busters: www.myspace.com/dustbustersmusic
Opening for the Dust Busters will be The Polka Dots, an even younger trio of musicians from Lovettsville, Virginia. Two sisters, Aislin and Nora Kavaldjian, plus their good friend Olivia Zook, love to play and reinterpret old music for modern ears. From old-time tunes, gypsy swing numbers, blues and gospel standards, to their own original songs, the Polka Dots make music that is fresh and always fun.
