MONTPELIER—Described as a having a classic folk sound with a modern day twist, Red Tail Ring is an up an coming young band composed of Michael Beauchamp and Laurel Premo out of Kalamazoo, Michigan. Red Tail Ring has played shows from coast to coast, and even over seas, but this weekend Northwest Ohio was able to get a sample of the band for themselves as The West Bethesda Presbyterian Church located just outside of Montpelier hosted the duo.
Over the past six year, the church has hosted numerous concerts. “This is our sixth year hosting this series” said West Bethesda pastor, and president of the Folk Alliance Region Midwest, Robert Haufbauer “We’ve hosted over 60 concerts. The musicians are touring, professional singer, songwriters. Some of these musicians are early in their career and are building a reputation and audience. Others have decided that they can make a comfortable living by touring and self booking – eliminating the costs of agents and managers”. Haufbauer went on to say that he has seen Red Tail Ring perform several times in the past, and has consistently been impressed with the talented duo.
In an intimate and very acoustically pleasing setting, Red Tail Ring took the stage in the basement of West Bethesda Church, singing 16 songs. An overriding theme to the set list was the extensive travel and time away from home that the band has to sacrifice in order to advance their career. “Sometimes you hear about the trip back home, but for us, its often the trip away from home that is the hardest part”.
The band fused sounds of old time Appalachian tunes, and contemporary folk music. “One of our musical pillars, and something we love doing, is coming up with close and unique vocal harmonies. It’s definitely a hallmark of our sound” band member Micheal Beauchamp said. When asked where the group gets their inspiration for their songs, Beauchamp said “Inspiration comes from a lot of places. Locally, we have a ton of Michigan musicians who inspire us and give us a lot of energy. We love making even original Red Tail Ring songs sound old, and we’ve been inspired by folks like John Hartford, the Louvin Brothers, and Hazel Dickens, to name a few”.
To get more information on the band, you can visit their website at wwe.redtailring.com where you can learn more about their sound, their history, and to get a sample of their very unique and pleasing sound.
