APRIL 16, 2009 ISSUE
Conquering Carolina: The Duhks Return To MerleFest
The DuhksBy the time they arrived at MerleFest in 2006, a serious buzz was building behind Winnipeg, Manitoba-based band The Duhks. Tagged as a neo-folk act, the quintet was making music that featured guitar, banjo and fiddle that was simultaneously propelled by a drummer and soul-powered vocalist. To say The Duhks didn’t have a lot of bluegrass in their repertoire might be an understatement.
From funk, soul and gospel, to the traditional sounds of old-time, zydeco and Irish dance music, The Duhks’ musical mélange is a fresh and unique melding of styles that sounds unlike any other band.
During the last three years, the energy, diversity and musicality that drew enormous crowds at their small stage performances have propelled The Duhks’ Watson Stage slots to must-see status. From their stellar playing during the New Generation Jam and their audience with Rosalee Watson (both she and Doc are big fans) at the Americana Stage to the band’s rapturous rendition of “Whole Lotta Love” with Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones on mandolin, the band has been a hit with fans young and old.
While the band’s third album, Fast Paced World, has been getting rave reviews from publications far and wide, The Duhks have been burning up the road on their way to Wilkesboro.
According to Duhks founding member and banjo player Leonard Podolak, former MerleFest Assistant Director Claire Armbruster first saw the band at a conference in Atlanta in 2002. When the band signed to top-notch roots label Sugar Hill Records, Armbruster was convinced that The Duhks needed to be at MerleFest.
Once in Wilkesboro, they didn’t disappoint. Podolak, along with fiddler Tania Elizabeth, guitarist Jordan McConnell, percussionist Scott Senior and vocalist Jessee Havey immediately began turning heads while finding a home at the festival more than a thousand miles from their home.
“I’m an old time banjo player and huge fan of doc Watson. He was pretty much my number one influence,” said Podolak. “That there’s a place in the world with that much respect for Doc—that just speaks to me.
“The festival is a part of me and a part of our experience. It’s played a major role in the goings on of The Duhks,” said Podolak. “It’s transcended the point where we’re actually meeting our heroes for the first time. Sitting at the dinner table with John Paul Jones—give me a break.”
When The Duhks arrived in Wilkesboro in 2007, the band had recently hired singer Sarah Dugan to replace the recently departed vocal powerhouse Havey. While some fans may have been skeptical about her abilities, Dugan’s voice and stage presence quickly erased any doubt as to her place in the band.
Last year, Dugan’s brother Christian joined the fray as The Duhks new drummer and percussionist, providing a new rhythmic jolt to the band’s already dance-friendly sound.
“With Christian and Sarah joining the band, it’s enabled us to really crack down and write our own songs,” said Podolak. “All of a sudden we have songs that are influenced by Afrobeat music. They bring Afrobeat, funk, blues and pop—just a whole range of influences that weren’t there before. With Christian on the drums, it really widens our dynamic range. We can get as little as we want or as big as we want.”
Since the release of Fast Paced World last fall, The Duhks have spent little time in their home country, instead burning up the highways and byways of the United States, where most of their fans reside.
“We’ve been busting it on the road doing lots of radio shows, lots of venues. Generally speaking we’re just hitting it as hard as we can,” said Podolak.
And while the band may not have realized it at the time, Podolak readily acknowledges MerleFest’s impact on the band regarding more than just gaining new fans and selling merchandise.
“That’s the thing about MerleFest. It’s so not just a gig,” Podolak said. “It’s a place where we can come together with our old and new friends and create. It’s part of what we’re doing. It expands our artistry. It helps create the palette, the canvas of what it is we do.”
Although the band will almost certainly draw heavily from Fast Paced World for its last two sets at 3:45 and 5:15 p.m., The Duhks’ first set alongside Jim Lauderdale and Peter Rowan at 10:45 a.m. looks to be one of the festival’s most anticipated collaborations between a pair of MerleFest’s most respected performers and one of the event’s hottest young groups.
“MerleFest is incredible. We really can’t wait to do it,” said Podolak. “I got a stack of Peter Rowan CDs like you wouldn’t believe.”
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