Apr

9

Bart & the Budwiggers

Filed Under Updates 

Bart Budwig Last week I was lost, flipping stations, aimless, stumbling in a half-lit room searching for a sound with some soul. The answer came to me accidentally. The world clicked into place once more at a flash of greased lightning, coming from none other than Moscow’s very own Bart and the Budwiggers laying out the blues before Low Red Land at the Nuart.

Deep waters run curiously serene. Consider the multiple folded, crumpled, inter-woven layers of maritime life surging and withdrawing within the strata of an ocean trench.

oooh, sea lifeNow, picture the face of the ocean on an apparently calm day. The tide rises, the tide falls. Breathe in, breathe out. A wind stirs a swell that makes you gasp – the tide rises, the tide falls, and you breathe more calmly in the peace.


Calm SeaBudwig, curiously, reaches his listeners with the same effect as this natural phenomenon. Years of sounding the depths of personal trauma and family tragedy have given Budwig a profound familiarity with the deep waters he lets stream into his piercing lyrics; bobbing along to the accompaniment, they begin mildly, gather steam, and swell as the throaty current of Budwig’s husky vocals and buoyant guitar reach a zenith of intensity.

Although it is difficult to hear unless tipped off, Budwig claims the control and gradual grand rise of momentum in the first albums of Coldplay as a model for his tunes. Similarly, you can hear the playful quality of Vince Guaraldi in the Budwigger’s strings, after a hint. “Basically, I just want to make people feel good when they listen to my music, not in a stupid way but in a really genuine way,” explained Budwig.

Budwig has taken a newish direction for his indigo blues by coming together with his life-long friend Andy Abrams and his prodigy-pal Cooper Trail to form Bart and the Budwiggers, a natural outgrowth of the trio’s jamming as a church worship team. Abrams, a local civil engineer and father of two, taught Trail to play the drums when he was six. Now Trail, 13, is in 8th grade and at least five other bands and he jokes that Abrams’ claim to fame will be as his teacher. In his off-time from homework and band practice, Trail also rides the unicycle which, if you needed something more, is absolute proof of extraordinary talent. Trail’s rhythm ‘n’ beat behind Abram’s super-solid lead guitar give Budwig the freedom to explore the full emotional range of his songs with his vocals. The release is beautifully apparent, especially as a song approaches its climax.  This sense of liberation sets the Budwiggers apart from Bart’s solo work.

Bart & the BudwiggersIf you need to instill your soul with calm waters, or require an upbeat song to put priorities in their place, I recommend the Budwigger blues.
Catch the Budwiggers at the Battle of the Bands Fri., 10 April, 7:00 at the CUB Senior Ballroom in Pullman or check out their next show at the 1912 Center in Moscow on Fri., 18 April, at 10:00 p.m.

Molly is a freelance journalist and a senior at New St. Andrew’s College with a special interest in postcards and goldfish.  She writes for The Loop 21 and keeps the blog A New Amsterdam.

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