My favorite young band (up-and-coming would be a disservice) is now releasing their second cd entitled Time To Stand. This band is young, but man are they talented. The Belleville Outfit is: Phoebe Hunt (violin, vocals), Rob Teter (guitar, vocals), Connor Forsyth (piano, Hammond B3), Jonathan Konya (drums, vocals), Jeff Brown (bass, vocals), and Marshall Hood (guitar, vocals). They are an amalgamation of sounds and musicians from a number of areas, including South Carolina, Austin and New Orleans which began at a gig at Merlefest several years ago. What do they sound like? What do you like? You’ll find it somewhere in there! You’ve got the gypsy swing feel of Sunday Morning which would also be a great tune for a movie soundtrack. Americana, country, jazz, bluegrass- its all in there too.
This band is fortunate to have two excellent lead vocalists, Phoebe and Rob Teter who alternate songs on the disc, keeping the sound fresh. Connor Forsyth adds lively piano and organ and Phoebe’s violin (I would think of it as a fiddle, but they say violin- what’s the difference Phoebe?)sizzles throughout.
The title track has a tragic yet wonderful story behind it. Time To Stand is dedicated to Daniel Pearl, the journalist who was savagely murdered in Pakistan in 2002. Here is the rest of the story. Pearl was a classically trained violinist and a mandolin player. He frequently jammed with bands around the Washington D.C area, and even with local bands in Mumbai, India when his assignments took him there. Violin maker Jonathan Cooper learned that Pearl played violin and had an idea to make a world class violin and dedicate it to Pearl. He spoke about his idea with fiddler extraordinaire Mark O’Connor who runs a fiddle camp for promising young players. They decided to lend the instrument to someone at fiddle camp each year and share Pearl’s story. Mark O’Connor accepted the instrument on behalf of the Daniel Pearl Foundation at a Boston concert on November 16, 2002. The violin, and another later built are presented to promising players who keep it and play it a year. Phoebe was the 2006 recipient of the original Daniel Pearl Memorial Violin.
This disc is loaded with thirteen great tunes. Highlights included Nothing’s Too Good For My Baby and As Good As It Gets, which really shows off Phoebe’s vocal and violin/fiddle talents. This is such a talented young bunch. I think of them as an Americana Supergroup that just happened to form at the beginning of their careers instead of the end! Time To Stand is sure to be one of the top Americana discs of 2009.
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