OLD SETTLER'S MUSIC FESTIVAL 4-18-09

This is a yearly 4 day festival held about 15 miles outside Austin. We went only for the day on Saturday. They have 2 outdoor stages and one indoor. They should get rid of the indoor as the sound echoes. and echoes. and echoes...We, of course, started off at the indoor stage. That's because BettySoo, Ben Mallot and Jenny Reynolds were doing a song swap. Other than the echoing sound, it was a good set. I especially liked the end when together they did Gram Parson's "The Return of the Grievous Angel." It really works because Ben Mallot, who I hadn't heard before, has an incredibly soulful voice. It's perfectly suited for the Americana, mournful songs of the day.
On their own, they did about 4 songs each. Obviously, I'm a big BettySoo fan and have written about her repeatedly. Suffice to say, as always, she won many new fans on this day. I know because a friend was volunteering at the festival and selling merchandise. After their set, I guess a lot of people came over wanting to buy BettySoo cds. As for Jenny Reynolds, this was only my 3rd time seeing her and I still haven't seen a full set, just song swaps, or a 1/2 hour gig. What I've heard, I like. She's a good writer. Her latest record, Next To You, rocks and whispers. It also has some of Austin's best musicians playing (Warren Hood), singing (Ruthie Foster) or producing (Scrappy Jud Newcomb). Pick it up at Waterloo or order from CD Baby. Ben Mallot, since this was my first time seeing him, all I can tell you is I'm looking forward to hearing more of him. When I hear someone for the first time, I usually end up focusing on whatever it is that strikes me first. With Ben, it was that soulful voice. I couldn't tell you anything about his lyrics. I just listened to that voice. So, next time, I'll pay attention to the songs!
Next we went over to the small outside stage to hear Belleville Outfit. They are a local band who play country flavored jazz. Great musicians and voices. A unique sound. Lots of fun to sit and listen to.
From there we went back to the indoor stage to catch the last 1/2 hour of Stonehoney. I heard them for the first time during SXSW. They are from California but now live in Austin. This is a country rock band with great harmonies and catchy melodies. They look to be getting a pretty big following in Austin.
Back outside to the small stage to hear a bluegrass trio from Nashville called The Lovell Sisters. I am not a huge bluegrass fan. I can take it in small doses and while they played for an hour I lasted about a 1/2 hour. They are very good but I can only listen to so many violin/mandolin solos. That's just me.
We went back inside to catch a little bit of Ray Wylie Hubbard who was doing a songwriter clinic. It was pretty crowded by the time we got in there so we didn't stay long.
Headed over to the main stage to wait for Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women. I'm a big Dave Alvin fan but for some reason, never had seen him. The Guilty Women are a group he put together to record his latest record. All are from Austin except for the great vocalist, Christy McWilson. He played all of his well known material, nothing new as far as I could tell. I love his old stuff so this was fine by me. The band includes Cindy Cashdollar on dobro and steel. Any time you get to see her play, it's a good thing.