Different Folk Rock Bands You Never Heard Of
April 30th, 2011 by admin
The folk rock genre is a growing and eclectic one that includes a variety of styles from singer-songwriter, electric folk, and Celtic punk. It originated in the early 1960′s, but has grown and spread to be influenced by all types of cultural and folk music.
A classical take on the folk rock genre can be found in bands such as the Hansen Family, Beirut, House & Bird, and singer-songwriters like Johnny Flynn, M Ward, and Mason Jennings, who use traditional acoustic instruments, such as guitars, banjos, and ukuleles weaved into folk-style melodies and vocals.
For a more Eastern European flavor, a band such as New York-based Gogol Bordello has created a sub-genre called Gypsy punk, using traditional instruments such as the fiddle, accordion, and acoustic guitars merged with more uptempo rhythms and Gypsy-like melodies.
Celtic folk rock has been very influential on the genre as well, with bands such as the Dropkick Murphys, the Tossers, the Pogues, and Fiddler’s Green mixing traditional Irish music with current rock rhythms and instrumentation, such as electric guitars and drum sets.
Other folk-rock bands include Dead Man’s Bones, Old Crow Medicine Show, Raise High the Roofbeam, Brother Lou, Billy Bragg, Fleet Foxes, and Devotchka.