Grab a drink, sit down, take a breath, have a listen for a moment, an hour, a night, because here they come with their
earnest musical narratives of the back alleys, the open range, the hollow, the front porch, the lives behind the love, want, fear and fracture of a world that despite all adversity remains, within their songs, hopeful, thoughtful, jubilant.
The band deems their sound Junkerdash – part folk, part bluegrass, part string-band blues, part punk, and most certainly wholly kickass. Bourbon and the Western Swing are a recommended pairing with Hillfolk’s Junkerdash, we’re told, which seems spot-on. Fronted by multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, Travis
Ward, this trio of neo-traditionalists includes Alison Ward on musical saw, washboard, banjo, and purely gorgeous vocals, as well as Mike Waite keeping the heartbeat, rhythm and flow alive on double bass. John Doe (X, the Knitters), patron saint of the American Dream, once said, “If John Steinbeck owned a speakeasy, Hillfolk Noir
would be the house band.” Amen.