Event

Pluck & Rail at the Howland

The Howland Cultural Center, Beacon's premier Arts and Entertainment venue, is pleased to present Pluck and Rail with George Gierer (guitar, banjo, lead vocals), Andrew Sussman (cello, mandolin, vocals), Zach Swanson (bass) and Nicholas Lieto (trumpet, flugelhorn, percussion.) Drawing from the deep well of American music, Pluck and Rail blend together gritty songwriting, tight vocal melodies and soaring cello runs to craft their unique sound. Pluck and Rail is the acoustic intersection of Andrew Sussman of the prog-rck heavyweights, Frogg Cafe and George Gierer of the folkabilly band, South County. George bought his first guitar at age 17 and moved to Austin, Texas, where he soaked up the sounds of the South and was forever changed. After hearing Eddie Van Halen at the age of 15, the classically trained cellist Sussman started spinning Bach into the blues and Beethoven into Zappa. Pluck and Rail's original compositions are equal parts: Ralph Stanley, The Decemberists, Morphine, Robert Earl Keen, Gillian Welch, Wilco, The Avett Brothers, Roscoe Holcomb, Mumford and Sons and Led Zeppelin, and their live performances blister with a passion and energy not often seen in acoustic music. Susan Reid is a Connecticut-based banjoist, guitarist, and contralto singer known for her innovative interpretations of American and world-music traditions, and original compositions.