THE DIRT WHISPERERS 

are Eric Simons on guitar and vocals and Bradford Reed on pencilina, vocals and drums. Eric has played with Ladybug Mecca of The Digable Planets, The Dukes of Brooklyn, Tractor Supply and Revel in Dimes. A Kansas native, Eric is heavily influenced by rock and soul, country, gospel, early jazz and ragtime, but his style is mainly rooted in the Mississippi Delta.

Bradford Reed’s pencilina, his own invention, is an electric ten-stringed collision of the hammer dulcimer, slide guitar, koto and fretless bass. Reed, born in NYC, played with King Missile III (and produced 4 of their records) and in the original band of The Blue Man Group as well as Satellite and the Harpoonist. Reed has also scored numerous films and TV shows, including Superjail! on Adult Swim and Ugly Americans on Comedy Central.

Stylistically the music of The Dirt Whisperers is grounded in traditional blues and classic soul, but it traverses many genres, adding in touches of gospel and Americana, while never losing track of good old American rock and roll. Eric’s guitar can growl or whisper or even call on the steely sounds of a National Resonator. Both drums and bass are simultaneously covered by Bradford on a minimal drum kit and the pencilina which constantly adds unexpected tones and textures that are often difficult to explain. There might be a bow tantalizing the strings or harmonics ringing from the sticks, which act as movable bridges, riding the strings like a ship on the high seas. While the collaboration of Simons and Reed may seem experimental (and it can be!), The Dirt Whisperers pride themselves on singing and playing melodies that will hook your eardrums while their beats get your ass shaking.

Beams is a Toronto-based psychedelic folk band whose sound has evolved through a stylistic progression encompassing aspects of several genres while retaining a strong identity and never chasing trends. Their unique harmonization of female voices, sonically levitating vibraphone, warm purring amps, and shimmering banjo have earned them comparisons to artists ranging from Wilco, Fleetwood Mac and Kate Bush, to Big Thief, Waxahatchee, and Kevin Morby.

Throughout their career, they’ve recorded with luminaries such as Peter J. Moore (Cowboy Junkies' Trinity Sessions) and Chicago Post-Rock pioneer John McEntire (Tortoise, Stereolab) and have shared the stage with the Sea & Cake, Widowspeak, The Sadies and Shannon Shaw. 

Their new album Requiem for a Planet, Recorded by Kevin S. McMahon (Swans, Real Estate, Titus Andronicus) at Marcata Recording—a 200-year-old barn at the base of the Shawangunk mountains in New Paltz, NY— is a world unto itself. Described succinctly as “a hike along Grief Mountain with scenic lookouts,” Requiem stakes out new sonic territory for the band, while still thematically exploring both the darkness and light of the places we find ourselves.