Music of the Mountains: S'moregrass (Brian Blaser and Georgie Hahn)

Guitarist Brian Blaser jokes that five years ago, he didn’t even know how to spell the word “bluegrass.” His music tastes focused primarily on alternative and electric rock, playing in a group that performed songs from artists like the Allman Brothers, Phish, the Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones, Radiohead, and Pearl Jam.One night, at a local bluegrass pick, Blaser met a young banjo player, Sean McFarland, and the two discussed their live performances. The two talked about McFarland sitting in for a gig from Blaser’s band, and while Blaser felt unsure if a banjo would fit in that particular band, he invited McFarland to the gig.Within the week, Blaser’s band broke up due to internal forces unknown to him. Instead of telling McFarland that the band no longer existed, Blaser assembled a new group of people. From this collection of musicians came the foundations of Smörgåsgrass. To this day, Blaser and McFarland agree to disagree on who asked who about McFarland jumping in.The name came from the band’s original bass player, Franziska Zenhäusern, who often brought in a smörgåsbord of food during practices. Not only does the band name apply for that personal reason, but it has also become representative of the band’s ever-changing and always flexible lineup. Blaser, McFarland, and harmonica (or “mouth fiddle”) player Alex Medler have been consistent members since its foundation.Our theme song is courtesy of singer-songwriter Brittney Wagner. Stream her record Better off Dead here. Support the showThank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chief, at [email protected] Hickman, multimedia producer, at [email protected] Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected] inquiries: [email protected] to our website for all of the latest news. Subscribe to The Mountain-Ear in print and online.Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.Find us on Facebook @mtnear and Instagram @mtn.earListen and watch on YouTube today.Share this podcast by scrolling to the bottom of our website home page or by heading to our main hub on Buzzsprout.Thank you for listening!