Preview: Who: The Watercarvers Guild
When: 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19
Tickets: $12 at the door.
If you live in Missoula, chances are the Watercarvers Guild isn't exactly familiar to you. If you're lucky, maybe you caught this Helena-based trio at First Night in 2001 or 2002, or at an Out to Lunch gig this past summer.
Other than those shows, the group hasn't exactly been a staple of local performance stages.
But don't think for a minute that their obscurity is deserved. Indeed, these guys may be Montana's most underappreciated acoustic ensemble.
At the very least, it's easy to say that they're this state's most underrated family band.
Featuring father Darrell Casey and sons David and Nathan, the Watercarvers Guild is an acoustic trio of multi-instrumentalist/singers who've been playing together since David and Nathan were old enough to pick up instruments.
While they only decided to form into a three-piece band in 2000, their lifelong rapport (not to mention their refined skills as pickers, plinkers and singers) is evident from the moment they hit the stage.
Their original music draws on the complexity of bluegrass, the vocal harmonies of gospel and country, and the good communication of Š well, a happy family, to create a group dynamic that is by turns playful, earnest, warm and exhilarating.
And the fact that their onstage arsenal includes guitars, mandolin, piano, bouzouki, electric bass, and three voices, the Watercarvers Guild has a habit of sounding like a lot more than your typical folk trio.
"My kids grew up in an environment where music was something real, something you did - not just something where you pushed a button and it came out of a box," says Darrell Casey. "I think that has something to do with it."
In conversation, Darrell Casey comes off as a remarkably humble man, as if he's not even cognizant of the fact that he and his sons have put together some of the best folk melodies and most intricate arrangements this side of Nickel Creek.
Take, for example, the song "Self Made Man," in which Darrell jumps over to the piano to tickle out a romping boogie reminiscent of Little Feat. The group drops a fast, repeated instrumental flourish in unison at the end of each chorus; and then ends the song by trading off those same flourishes as solos, call-and-response style, creating a brief and tricky coda that few seasoned bands could pull off.
The effect is at once dazzling and perfectly suited for the playful tone of the song.
"It's only a song, you know; so sometimes you have to work it a bit - squeeze something out of it," says Darrell demurely.
As far as the group's dearth of Missoula-area appearances goes, Darrell Casey says that's largely a matter of fiscal necessity.
"Unfortunately, we're not 22-year-old, single singer-songwriters who can hop in the car and play coffeehouses for exposure," says Darrell. "We have families, and so we have to make some money at it at this point. And in Missoula, it doesn't seem like there are a lot of consistent options in that regard."
But Missoula may start seeing more of these guys in the future. That's because Darrell and sons have resolved to "start stepping it up a bit, trying to get more of a regional exposure," says Darrell.
"We love playing together - it's definitely one of the three ways I identify myself," says Darrell. "I'm a husband, a father, and a guitar player. It'd be nice to do more playing."
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