Boxcar Social 8/27/10 Triantafyllo Festival, Spring Grove, PA

    It seems like there are a lot of bluegrass bands on the scene now. You have the elder statesmen of the newgrass genre, Yonder and Railroad Earth. Some of the young’uns include Cabinet and the Coal Town Rounders. But one band that that been able to combine rock based jamming with bluegrass’s twang is Hanover’s own Boxcar Social. I witnessed them conjuring up some serious magic on Aug. 27 at the Triantafyllo Festival in Spring Grove.
     Frank Vecera rips it up on electric guitar with a style all his own with a nod to heavier, darker influences. One Brian Davis lays down a solid bottom on the fretless bass. Dave Wonderlin throws down a percussive groove while Col. Josh Sanders shows a delicate touch on the trap set. With a voice made for that high and lonesome sound, Paul Kraft brings the bluegrass on mandolin.
    They opened the show with an original composition, Spaceman, highlighting the vocal interplay between Paul and Brian. This was followed by a rocking cover of Folsom Prison Blues. The reggae tinged ten minute 43 led into a monster jam, highlighting their ability to stretch things out. Another early peak is All Of These Dreams, another original. Midway through the song, they go into just the chorus of Fire on the Mountain. This leads to a soaring section of inspired improv.
    Later in the set, the fan saluting Taper’s Section leads into a smoking Drumz and a truly tripped out Space with Brian scatting all over the chorus for “Bright Sunshine Day” A cover of Phish’s First Tube leads into a raging jam that has more than a nod to Hanover’s other legendary jamband Devolver. (Yes, I can work in a Devolver reference anywhere but listen to the show; it’s there.)
     They wrap up the show with their stand out monument to everything that is encompassed by Boxcar Social, the Pockets Sandwich. It consists of Pockets (Paul Kraft original)>Steam Powered Aeroplane>Gin and Juice>Steam Powered>Pockets. Their ability to go from trad bluegrass to an anthem of early 90’s G-Funk back into bluegrass is what makes Boxcar who they are. The tension that they weave during Gin and Juice is truly a sight to behold. The reprise of Pockets even has a hiphopesque breakdown in it.
     Playing to their largest audience yet, Boxcar showed their ability to rise to the occasion and put on a peak performance.