The Bushels

THE BUSHELS on iTunes

admin — Sat, 06 Nov 2010 14:19:57 +0000

New Record Wood & Steel Available here:

THE BUSHELS to play Lowcountry Field Feast Sun Nov 14th

admin — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 15:03:10 +0000

We are very excited to be a part of this year’s Lowcountry Field Feast.

This is a farm field trip to benefit Lowcountry Local first. James Beard award winner Mike Lata from FIG

will be cooking it up, and we’re gonna play!

Ticket info here:

http://www.lowcountryfieldfeast.com/

LIVE at The Windjammer Thurs Aug 5th

admin — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 12:06:58 +0000

THE BUSHELS will be at The Windjammer on Thurs Aug 5th w Steel Petals

http://www.the-windjammer.com/music.html

THE BUSHELS LIVE in Macon GA @ Bragg Jam

admin — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 02:07:13 +0000

We are very excited to be playing in Macon GA this Saturday at The Rookery as part of The Bragg Jam Festival.

ticket info here:

http://www.braggjam.org/concert-crawl

Charleston Scene review of Wood&Steel (A-)

admin — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 01:36:20 +0000

By Devin Grant, Special to The Post and Courier,

Thursday, July 8, 2010

The Bushels

Wood & Steel

(Independent)

Local acoustic quartet The Bushels have been showing the Lowcountry their own brand of acoustic music for awhile now, most notably during the band’s weekly hoedown at Seel’s on Sullivan’s every Wednesday evening. While Mal Jones, Guilds Hollowell, and Jim and Whitt Algar embody the typical bluegrass four-piece that consists of acoustic guitar, upright bass, banjo and mandolin, the music of The Bushels is anything but typical. On the band’s new seven-song studio album, “Wood & Steel,” the boys come out swinging with a harmonica solo at the beginning of the first track, “Cheap Beer Bar Brand Blues,” that would make the guys in Blackfoot proud. Lively numbers, such as “Kon Let’s Dance” and “Dust Me Off” make up the majority of the album. There are a couple of slower tunes, such as the mournful “Someday” and the blues-infused “Ain’t Gon Be Troubled.” The scorching “Train Called Love” is probably the CD’s best track, but that’s saying a lot on a short but sweet CD that is good from beginning to end.

Video of “Dust Me Off” from ABC ‘s Lowcountry Live

admin — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 00:04:13 +0000

Video of “Dust Me Off“

THE BUSHELS LIVE at Home Team BBQ West Ashley

admin — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 23:16:02 +0000

Thursday July 8th.

Free Show.

9pm.

Charleston City Paper review of new album Wood&Steel

admin — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 21:04:27 +0000

In the Jukebox: The Bushels

The local quartet strikes several cool chords on new LP

by T. Ballard Lesemann

The Bushels
Wood & Steel
(independent)

Local four-piece acoustic act The Bushels rock and stomp harder than expected on their new seven-song studio collection.

The fast-chuggin’ harmonica solo that kicks off “Cheap Beer Bar Brand Blues” — a fiery performance by Bushels guitarist Jim Algar that rivals Shorty Medlocke’s in Blackfoot’s “Train, Train” — foreshadows the bluesy raunchiness to come. While there’s still plenty of traditional bluegrass and country flavor in the music, The Bushels stretch away from typical song structures of the genres.

While mandolinist/singer Mal Jones’ peppery string work and banjoist Guilds Hollowell’s rolling finger-picking technique resemble elements of the best bluegrass and mountain music in the current jam scene, the revolving lead vocal duties and rich harmonies between Jones and the Algar brothers (Jim and bass-playing sibling Whitt) steer things into more pop-rock/blues-tinged songsmith territory.

Like their 2009 debut, a five-song, self-titled EP, The Bushels recorded Wood & Steel at Scott Sain’s Blacktree Studio on Johns Island, keeping things simple and uncluttered.

Quick-paced with a vibrant beat, “Dust Me Off,” “See Ya Soon,” and “Kon Let’s Dance” (pronounced almost like “Come on, let’s dance” in the chorus) bounce with an air of romance and puppy love, keeping a bluegrass feel and a thumping 2/4 rhythm. The strummier “Someday” slows down a bit, easing with a cool, swingy beat and smooth harmonies.

The fellas hot-foot it on “Train Called Love,” the most rockin’ track of the bunch. It sounds like the kind of countrified, riff-laden shenanigans the Meat Puppets got into on their first few albums — deliberately hectic with snarls and bellows on one hand and rapid-fire chops on the other.

The band’s bluesy side shines on another nice standout, “Ain’t Gon’ Be Troubled,” a slow-burning song with some of the sweetest moanin’ and groanin’ of the year.

The band’s two years’ worth of jamming, picking, and fine-tuning their set as the house band at Seel’s on Sullivan’s (formerly Off the Hook) on Sullivan’s Island seems to have paid off nicely. There’s nothing forced or affected about these new songs. With a solid approach and an air of confidence, The Bushels can more easily glide from mellow ballads to more dynamic anthems these days.

Devoid of special effects, fancy overdubs, and production tricks, Wood & Steel is pretty simple stuff, but, overall, the band’s sound is a bit fuller than last year’s debut.

The musical and vocal chemistry between Jones, Hollowell, and the Brothers Algar seems more complex and developed as well. Wood & Steel‘s a keeper. (myspace.com/thebushels)

The Bushels perform every Wednesday at Seel’s on Sullivan’s from 7-10 p.m.

Chas Post and Courier: Q&A w THE BUSHELS re: Wood&Steel

admin — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 15:24:40 +0000

By Margaret McAvoy, Special to The Post and Courier

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Members of the Bushels, Jim Algar, Whit Algar, Mal Jones and Guilds Hollowell, have formed a creative acoustic quartet. The four take on traditional bluegrass and make it their own.

Releasing its new CD, “Wood and Steel,” the Bushels opened up and answered some questions for Charleston Scene.

Q: Who writes? Who sings?

Jim Algar (vocals): Anyone can bring anything to the table. When you have a collective group, everybody is essentially an equal part. Our method is simple. You bring a song in and see what’s good. We’re looking for a spark. Essentially, with us having three main singers, you kind of get three different approaches but it’s all one band. It’s the power of the simplicity. I think it’s why we have such a wide range of people who are enjoying what we’re doing. Our sound really picks up all the elements. We switch from singing lead to singing background.

Q: What is special about this new album “Wood and Steel”?

Jim Algar: This is the next step in our evolution. It’s just something that when a band plays for a while you grow and get tighter. You grow a new dynamic. In our last CD, we didn’t have any of Whit’s songs. And he’s written some songs on this CD. The ideas on this one are more scattered around. The sound is more cohesive.

Q: How would you describe your music to a first time listener?

Hollowell (banjo): I’ve played bluegrass for over 30 years. I can tell you that what we play is not bluegrass.

Jim Algar: That’s the difficult thing. What genre are we? We are not traditional bluegrass. We have traditional instruments, but we aren’t playing traditional bluegrass music. The main thing we try to do more than anything else is that we try to view ourselves as an acoustic quartet. A lot of times because we have a banjo, people say well they’re see bluegrass singers. And we aren’t.

Q: How has your chemistry and comfort level evolved over the course of the first year and a half?

Hollowell: What I’ve found about this group, and I have been playing music longer than these guys have been alive, is that there’s more chemistry in this group that I’ve ever felt in any other group that I’ve ever played in. They have proved that. It’s just a lot of fun.

Jones (mandolin): We’re all in different stages in our lives, but we get up there and it’s just a conversation.

Hollowell: It’s just always fun. It’s cool.

Whit Algar (bass): We never practice. (Everyone laughs)

Jim Algar: It’s always an open gig.

Q: The Bushels. Where did the name orginate?

Jim Algar: Growing up here, oyster roasts are something that we’ve always gone to and enjoyed, and that’s what we like to do and play in a environment that people have a good time, and that’s really what people respond to. When it comes to a band name, you have to pick the one that you hate the least. It was a long, long process. All the great bands are called THE somethings. … And our old band names were constantly mispronounced. So we wanted something simple.

Q: What is it like playing in the Lowcountry?

Jones: The best.

Hollowell: Everyone seems to love us.

Jim Algar: We’ve got the most fan appreciation I’ve ever had. There’s nothing better than playing in the Lowcountry.

Wed May 26th CD Release Show @ The Pour House w Truth and Salvage Co.

admin — Mon, 24 May 2010 16:04:14 +0000

Come help us celebrate the release of our new CD “Wood&Steel” at The Pour House on Wednesday May 26th at 9 oclock.

We will be sharing the bill with good friends Truth and Salvage Co. from Los Angeles.

Advanced Tix here:

http://www.etix.com/ticket/servlet/onlineSearch?action=displayPerformance&pageNumber=0&pageSize=10&searchType=venue&queryString=action%3dvenueSearch%26venue_id%3d2179%26searchType%3dvenue

The Pour House

1977 Maybank Hwy.Charleston, SC 29412
(843) 571-4343