Whether they are a part of the Punch Brothers or working on separate projects Chris Eldridge and Noam Pikelny are always busy making music.

The newest project is a new band starring Noam Pikelny and Chris Eldridge with Alex Hargreaves, Andrew Marlin, and Greg Garrison they have named Mighty Poplar.

Not only do the guys have a new band; they have their debut album out and ready for fans to give a listen.

Noting that it is his first truly Bluegrass album in nearly a decade when he released “Noam Pikelny Plays Kenny Baker Plays Bill Monroe”, Pikelny said, “I’m thrilled to finally share it with you.  I’ve been wanting to collaborate with Andrew Marlin forever, but apparently the univers wasn’t quit on board.  We had a duo tour announced for May 2020 that unfortunately fell by the wayside because of the 1-2 punch of a global health emergency and a broken banjo thumbpick.   When we revisited the collaboration, it snowballed into a full five piece bluegrass band, with Andrew playing mandolin and singing lead, Critter on guitar, Greg on upright bass, Alex on the fiddle, and yours truly on banjo. We recorded the album live over four days in the Fall of 2020 at the Tractor Shed outside Nashville, TN.”

Pikelny continued, “when we sat down in front of the microphones, it was the first time that all five of us made music together. Yet, it somehow felt like a reunion.  We were going to call the project ‘Bluegrass Homecoming’ but our album photo shoot was quickly derailed by Andrew refusing to wear a corsage and Critter’s weird fear of limos, so we pivoted to Mighty Poplar. Thanks for understanding.”

“Mighty Poplar” is available on all streaming platforms and can be found in the band’s online store – mightypoplar.com – or at some independent record stores.  A vinyl edition of the album is currently in pre-order only with plans to ship them out soon.

And what’s a new band and album without a tour???  Mighty Poplar are preparing to head out on the road in just over a month and more dates may be on the way.

Mighty Poplar tour dates:
May 8 at the Fox Theatre in Boulder, CO
May 9 at Washington’s in Fort Collins, CO
May 10 at the Globe Hall in Denver, CO – 2 shows
May 11 at the Tico Time Bluegrass Festival in Aztec, NM
May 12 at the Music Theater in Phoenix, AZ
May 15 at Pappy + Harriet’s in Pioneertown, CA
May 16 at the Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach, CA
May 17 at the Lobero Theatre in Santa Barbara, CA
May 18 at The Pico Union Project in Los Angeles, CA
May 20 at the Felton Music Hall in Felton, CA
May 21 at The Center for the Arts Grass Valley, CA
May 22 at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, CA
May 23 at the Neptune Theatre in Seattle, WA
May 25 at the Aladdin Theater in Portland, OR
Juley 29 at the RockyGrass Festival in Lyons, CO
Sept 15-17 at the Borderland Music Festival in East Aurora, NY
Sept 22-24 at the FreshGrass Music Festival in North Adams, MA

 

 

Feature photo credit: courtesy of the Punch Brothers