Nashville – I’m just going to lay it out there: roots/bluegrass/folk music is not my thing. If I had to pick one genre to avoid, this would typically be it. However, when I saw that Whiskey Shivers was playing at the Basement, I decided to give the genre a shot.

I have never been so glad that I made such a random decision. First of all, Whiskey Shivers is made up of the most eccentric group of young men I have ever seen (full sleeve tattoos, mullets, a washboard…you name it, they’ve got it). Out of Austin, Texas emerges Andrew (upright bass/vocals), Bobby (fiddle/harmonica/vocals/mullet), James (banjo/vocals), Joe (washboard/vocals) and Horti (guitar/vocals). Together, these five gentlemen put on a show like I have never seen before.

The songs are witty, well written and played, and they keep you engaged – something I (wrongly) assumed that bluegrass would never do for me. The place was packed full of eager concertgoers just dying to hear this music, so I have obviously been completely misled my entire life. Whiskey Shivers carried out a show that grabbed us all from the beginning and held on. One song in particular had everyone engaged as Joe encouraged us all to clap our hands and stomp our feet, thus including every single person in the audience. It brought on a thunderous stampede of stomping that made us all feel at least a little powerful, like we brought more to the table than just being open ears for these musicians to play to.

Whiskey Shivers did more than just include us in their music. All of the band members participated in witty banter unlike anything I had seen before. While most artists seem nervous during their onstage jokes, these guys seemed to genuinely include the audience (at the end of one song James even played the first few notes to “Under the Sea” on his banjo). They joked with one another as if it was just the five of them, and we all happened to be witnesses. When Horti made a comment about recording with a gentleman here in Nashville whom he dubbed “a cool cat”, the running joke for the evening became cat jokes. 

“That guy was meowsome,” Bobby at one point commented. When at the end of one song James stated, “I was trying to come up with a cat joke the whole time and couldn’t think of anything,” Joe answered, “Cat got your tongue?” The crowd roared with laughter, and it struck me just how well-rounded Whiskey Shivers’ show was. Not only was their music wonderful, engaging and genuinely pleasing to hear, but also the humor that all five members displayed was equally as enjoyable. There was never a single minute where I was not in some way being entertained – and that, ultimately, is the point of a concert.

Whiskey Shivers are currently on tour and if they’re coming to your area, I strongly suggest going to see them. Tour dates can be viewed here. 

Photo By Dan Williams Sr.