Bald Hill

New Gloucester Newgrass

BH Fronts Amiable Critter Reunion Show at SBE — TONIGHT

April 29, 2023 /

AUBURN, Maine — Late notice, but do join Bald Hill this evening for three hours of live and lively entertainment here at the Side By Each Brewing Co. BH, those surprisingly hep purveyors of newgrass, folk rock and Americana, will be joined on stage by members of the Amiable Critters — the one-time Norwalk, Connecticut-based super group — in addition to other special guests, assorted former Bald Hill collaborators, several farm animals and a cardboard cutout of Bobby Goldsboro.

Curtain is 6 p.m., leaving plenty of time for music, food, SBE’s signature beer (try the Kuriro rice lager) and related frivolities. Don’t miss it!

The Critters were, in fact, the DeTroy family band made famous throughout key-but-limited portions of the Nutmeg State by their multi-part harmonies, square jaws and hearty German stock. Ben DeTroy remains the mandolin and fiddler for Bald Hill, of course. Tonight he is reunited with brothers Tom, on vocals, and Matt on keyboards. Also on hand this evening are former Bald Hill drummer Kim Chasse and serial in-sitting crooner Ted McHugh.

“It’s going to be some beautiful, sonorous chaos up there tonight,” Ben DeTroy explained the night before. “A bit like The Last Waltz, only without the heavy drug use. Or Dylan.”

Sound & Color Collide this Saturday Night at SBE

March 6, 2023 /

AUBURN, Maine — Don’t miss Bald Hill’s show here at Side By Each Brewing Co. this Saturday night, March 11. And don’t miss the new and distinctive splash of color behind the band.

Area quilt artist and BH super fan Sharon Vandermay has fashioned — for the common musical good — a sound-absorbing backdrop of riotous color that debuted late in January, the last time Bald Hill played SBE. On that occasion, the expansive coverlet was suspended in rusticated-but-not-so-efficient fashion between two ladders. On Saturday, like the band, it will perform to its full breadth and capabilities, thanks to a custom stand.

As Fernando Lamas made clear, it’s more important to look good than to feel good. It’s better still to sound good, and the new quilt will play a vital role there.

Bald Hill, those surprisingly hep purveyors of blues-inflected newgrass, folk rock and Americana, prefer to perform around a condenser microphone or two, moving back and forth in the old-time, Appalachian style. No need to plug in each instrument, or multiple “dynamic” mics: The condenser picks everything up and relays a pure, unadulterated sound to the audience.

Condenser mics are very sensitive, however. They pick up every little sound in a room, even those that might have ricocheted off walls and ceilings back toward the performers. This results in the feedback. The new quilt will serve to absorb those ricochets from behind, and reduce feedback, even when BH deploys common/dynamic mics. While all the while looking totally fabulous. Click on the picture to enlarge and better appreciate its detail.

Chase Away the Winter Blues with Bald Hill, at Side By Each, Friday Jan. 20

January 13, 2023 /

AUBURN — The winter months, in Maine especially, place a higher priority on warm, friendly confines, fine ales and new material. All will be on hand when Bald Hill returns to Side By Each Brewing Co. here in Auburn on Friday night, Jan. 20. Showtime is 6-9 p.m.

And while we’re marking our calendars, please circle March 11: Bald Hill is scheduled to play Side By Each that evening, as well. When spring will be just around the corner. Technically.

The dead of winter, where all find ourselves now, is an surprisingly fruitful time for Bald Hill, those remarkably hep purveyors of blues-inflected newgrass, folk rock and Americana. Vacation and travel tend to be more limited in January and February — leaving more time to practice and develop new material.

When the band holds forth on Jan. 20, expect plenty of old favorites, but also a raft of new songs from Mandolin Orange (now known as Watchhouse), Robert Plant & Allison Krauss, Old Crow Medicine Show, Tyler Childers, Merle Haggard and Emmylou Harris.

BH Back at It: Saturday at Side By Each

September 8, 2022 /

Bald Hill will return the stage this Saturday, Oct. 29, with a Halloween show at Side By Each Brewing Co., in Auburn.

Showtime is 6-9 p.m., and do come dressed for the occasion. The good folks at Side By Each are going all out Saturday night, two nights early: costume contest, Spooky punchy… They’re even unveiling a new beer!

Halloween 2022 can also be seen as a tipping point: Winter is coming. We can all feel it, in the air, and that means Bald Hill — everyone’s favorite, surprisingly hep purveyors of blues-inflected newgrass, folk rock, traditional country and Americana  — will again rise to meet its joyous musical obligations. Surely the band’s eclectic selection of newgrass, folk rock, traditional country and Americana won’t sing themselves!

Join us at SBE, where we hope not to recognize you at all. At first.

Bald Hill at Davinci’s Friday night, April 15

April 13, 2022 /

LEWISTON, Maine — Bald Hill, those surprisingly hep purveyors of blues-inflected newgrass, folk rock and Americana, will drop into the Grappa Room, here at Davinci’s Italian Eatery, this Friday evening, April 15, from 6-9 p.m.

Davinci’s, home to the best pizza and pasta in the Twin Cities, has started hosting live music this spring. On Thursday nights, local acts have been holding court in the expansive bar area. On Friday nights, starting with Friday’s Bald Hill show, the music will move into the Grappa Room, where two large, garage-sized doors will open — essentially connecting this erstwhile banquet space with the bar space.

Bald Hill will preside therein, around a central mic, with an acoustic set of bluegrass, alt-country and traditional tunes. Rumor has it that, come Friday evening, several new selections will be test-driven inside Davinci’s massive, brick-bedecked, former mill space.

Be advised that Bald Hill will be popping up and dropping in to play music all over Maine this spring. Fresh of its triumphant All Dead Revue, which drew 200 patrons and exhausted the glass supply at Side By Each Brewery on April 2, BH will take the Revue on the road in May — up north, to the Blue Ox Saloon in Millinocket, on May 28. That show will benefit Boreal Theater Community Arts. Three days later, the band will feature at the Music for Mavis concert series on the town green in Turner, May 31.

Bald Hill is poised to confirm several more dates for June and beyond. For news of those shows, stay glued to this space.

All Dead Revue set for Saturday, April 2 at Side By Each

March 22, 2022 /

AUBURN, Maine — Bald Hill, those surprisingly hep purveyors of blues inflected newgrass, folk rock and Americana, will host the third annual All Dead Revue Saturday night, April 2, here at the Side By Each Brewery (www.sidebyeachbrewing.com) on Minot Avenue.

Show time is 6 p.m., the culmination of an all-day deal at SBE called “Hippie Fest.” No cover for this event or the All Dead Revue, but neither are tie-dyes or mood rings provided. Accordingly, attendees are advised to bring their own — $1 off all pints for anyone wearing tie-dye or “dirty Dead gear”! — and to encourage any and all Deadhead friends/relations to show up, pipe up, and put their money where their love is.

The All-Dead Revue is exactly what the name implies: an entire evening of songs made famous by the Grateful Dead, mainly their original work, but also those tunes covered in dedicated fashion by Jerry & the Boys during their three-plus decades on the road.

Bald Hill routinely invites fellow bands and musicians to collaborate with the Revue. This year’s Super Group for a Night includes the rhythm section from Yellow Sun Wreckers (drummer Kim Chasse and bassist Todd Burrowes), pedal steel virtuoso Tim Howie (Pocket Full of Mumbles) and SoPo vocalist Ted McHugh, formerly of 2010 darlings Mountain Avenue. Ted & the Band are scheduled to knock out renditions of “Ripple”, “Hobo Song” and, if everyone behaves, “Sugaree.” That’s all we’re prepared to share regarding the April 2 set list, which, according to All Dead Revue tradition, remains a somewhat closely guarded secret. For the record, Bald Hill last performed the Revue on Jan. 24, 2020. So, “third annual” is something of a stretch. Maybe the band will gather the tribe for another show this calendar year, to catch up…

BH back at SBE Jan. 22, with special guest, Frank Fotusky

January 16, 2022 /
Frank Fotusky

AUBURN, Maine — Bald Hill, those surprisingly hep purveyors of blues-inflected newgrass, folk rock and Americana, returns to the Side By Each Brewery on Saturday night, Jan. 22. The doors there at 110 Minot Ave. open at 11 a.m. The music begins at 6 p.m.

Bald Hill has accepted the invitation to perform monthly, in residence, all winter long at Side By Each. Next month, the band will host at SBE its annual All Dead Revue, a wildly popular Grateful Dead tribute featuring a collaboration of Bald Hill and multiple area musicians, a.k.a. Friends of Bald Hill (FOBH). Watch this space for further information on precise February dates — and news of other engagements.

Meanwhile, the Jan. 22 gig will showcase its own FOBH, the inimitable Frank Fotusky, sitting in on lead guitar. Frank plugs in to play with Yellow Sun Wreckers, a band featuring BH vocalist Renée St. Jean. But Fotusky is a nationally recognized virtuoso in the acoustic discipline known as piedmont-style blues. Indeed, Frank just released a new album last week, “Digging In John’s Backyard.”

Another great show in the offing. Y’all should come.

Nov. 26 Date Kicks Off Winter Residence at Side By Each

November 23, 2021 /

AUBURN, Maine — Bald Hill, those surprisingly hep purveyors of blues-inflected newgrass, folk rock & Americana, have agreed to play “in residence” here at the Side By Each Brewery through the winter of 2021-22.

As such, the New Gloucester 5-piece will perform monthly, starting this Friday night, Nov. 26, from 7-9 p.m.

For information on future monthly performances, watch this space — and the Side By Each website (www.sidebyeachbrewing.com). Indeed, rumor has it that Bald Hill may play its December gig at the brewery on New Year’s Eve. Stay tuned.

The Nov. 26 engagement follows the BH show held Oct. 30, where a packed house welcomed live music back to Side By Each for the first time since March 2020.

“What a great crowd that was! Such incredible energy,” said Ben DeTroy, Bald Hill mandolinist, fiddler and chief band spokesperson, based on the fact that he resides on Bald Hill. “Folks are definitely starved for live music these days. We’re thrilled to address this issue, each month going forward, at Side By Each.”

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