A R T S & C U LT U R E
The Storytellers are drummer-percussionist Steve Stelmach, guitarist-vocalist Scott Diehl, bassist-vocalist Lance Frantzich, banjoist Dave Burns and fiddler Tyler Emerson.
STORYTELLING THROUGH
Music
RISING ‘JAMGRASS’ BAND MAKES ITS MARK ON SOCAL A’s The Storytellers are sending a message loud and clear — bluegrass is not dead. The five-piece progressive bluegrass band, comprised of guitarist-vocalist Scott Diehl, bassist-vocalist Lance Frantzich, banjoist Dave Burns, fiddler Tyler Emerson, and drummer and percussionist Steve Stelmach, hit the scene roughly four years ago. Performing at bars, taverns and regional festivals throughout the state, the Storytellers “draw from the rich canon of traditional bluegrass, country blues, old-time and folk music as a basis for inspired improvisations and intrepid vocal harmonies.” The “jamgrass” band maneuvers traditional and progressive approaches to the genre, inspired by the likes of Doc Watson, Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead, to produce soulful, “bluegrassy” harmonies onstage. “We would call ourselves bluegrass-ish,” Diehl says. “It’s difficult to label our music. We try to so that people know what they’re going to get into when they see us, but we’re also a jam band, including country and bluesy roots.” Echoing his partner’s sentiments, Frantzich adds, “We play a lot of Grateful Dead — we call it ‘deadgrass.’ We really try to see ourselves as a bridge to bluegrass, because it has come and gone. We see ourselves as a part of the revival of that movement.” Like cousins, jamgrass and bluegrass share similar elements. Jamgrass, however, incorporates more instruments, such as drums, electric guitars and “resophonic” slide dobro guitars, into its DNA. It is also a “more open-to-interpretation format,” pulling from rock and pop.
The current version of the band formed officially in February 2018. The Storytellers performed at more than 30 Los Angeles-area shows by the end of the year. The jam band has since gone on to grace the stages of the Mint, Molly Malone’s, The Coffee Gallery Backstage, Kulak’s Woodshed, The Trip, Old Towne Pub, Redwood Bar, The Theatricum Botanicum, Silverlake Lounge, Cinema Bar, Maui Sugar Mill Saloon and Villains Tavern. “We are music lovers through and through,” Frantzich says. “We were attending a lot of shows, and at one point, we just decided that instead of attending all of these shows, we should just pick up instruments and start creating and playing music.” The Storytellers have also snagged gigs at the June Lake Jam Fest, the Huck Finn Jubilee, the OC Music Festival, the Love Street Festival and the main stage of the California Avocado Festival. Diehl says the inspiration behind the band’s name stems from the group’s desire to express meaningful and substantial stories through lyrics and music. “We sing songs that are stories,” he says. “We pick out music that has meaning, depth and substance to it — which, frankly, can sometimes be lacking in some of today’s music. So, we really like to get onstage and connect with people.” On top of performing improvised covers, the Storytellers are gearing up to launch “Howling in the Hills.” The CD, a blend of originals and bluegrass classics, will be engineered by Joshua “Cartier” Cutsinger at the Hayloft Studios.
Photo by Key Lime Photography
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BY JORDAN HOUSTON
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