The Floorboards
Roanoke, Virginia, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2011 | SELF | AFTRA
Music
Press
There has been a recent rash of about this new band the previous week or so, especially regarding the near-viral news about how they garnered a spot on stage at this year’s Floydfest, without even playing one gig! Well now, that isn’t so hard to grasp, when you consider the band’s line-up is a composite of the some of the areas most recognized, seasoned group of multi-instrumental writers, producers, teachers and of course players, who have played with DAYUM near everybody, and individually are currently appearing in several different arrangements! It would be silly for a concert promoter or booking agent hard not to say HEYAL YEAH!
This was my first time seeing these fellas together as The Floorboards, and I wasn’t sure what to expect, when I sat down at Gillie’s in Blacksburg, Friday night. If it was also your first time, and you came expecting to hear a couple sets of slick cookie-cutter covers, well then you came to the wrong show. Oh they did a couple tunes by The Rolling Stones and The Grateful Dead, but like other bands with this level of talent, they put their own spin on the old standards. No, The Floorboards are truly originals on many different levels, and together they raised a fresh new product and all of it homegrown quality. However, I was trying to imagine who some of their musical influences might be, as I listened to Matt Browning take to the mic to share some of his melodic stories. Then, when Patrick Turner entered with his crisp mandolin chops, I had a flashback to early country/rock innovators of like Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman of The Flying Burrito Brothers. Whew, that took me back! Bassman, Jake Dempsey and drummer, George Rocksteady Penn played together many times before, laying it all down, from funk to folk. They teamed up on just such an eclectic backbeat that reminded me of Kenny Gradney’s and Richie Hayward’s mix back in the day. Don’t think for a second that left Bob Chew as odd man out! Like the rest of the band, he was totally stoked and ready to play this gig, and his slide work (as always) was spot on, no matter which direction the next tune took him. One minute, there were shades of Lowell George’s Lafayette Railroad, almost whispering like the sound track of a dream, and the next he would come across with a little raspy and raunchy David Lindley, lettin’ the big humbuckin’dogs eat!
Yeah children…the word in the Burg is, this was a WIN for the band and for all who showed up! Simply put, The Floorboards have “IT”. So, perhaps one day, not so long down the road, you too will be sampling something fresh off the vine, and you’ll know it came from right here in the valley! If you missed the show...no worries. They'll be back, and soon! Check ‘em out at http://www.reverbnation.com/floorboards, as well as, their Facebook page. Do it now! Its ripe for the pickin’! - Tim Pratt
Discography
2012 - EP
2012 - Self Titled
2017 - Borrowed Moon
Photos
Bio
The Floorboards are an American roots rock ensemble hailing from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.
The band marries rock & roll and country roots with the sights and sounds of southern mountain towns. Jake and Rob shake the leaves from the trees. Chris coaxes stringed cries from the hills and hollers. Matt writes and sings the story.
The Floorboards released their second studio album, Borrowed Moon, on November 21, 2017. Borrowed Moon finds the Roanoke, VA based band delicately walking a line between singer/songwriter, Matt Browning’s, evocative lyrics and guitarist/songwriter, Chris Blankenship’s, tastefully blistering guitar work.
Since the Floorboards’ debut album in 2012, the years have gone by in a flash of Ford Econoline and rock ‘n’ roll. Borrowed Moon was given its first kick at life in 2013 with the band’s original lineup. Something with the music didn’t feel right, so they took to the road to figure it out. As the dust settled, the band experienced lineup changes, a few broken bones - and the songs that singer/songwriter Matt Browning penned with an acoustic guitar became their proud workingman’s rock ‘n’ roll music. Somewhere between Birmingham, Alabama and New York City, the band agreed a total change of scenery was needed to drive their next album forward.
Giving up the relative ease of a hometown studio in Virginia for North Carolina, The Floorboards found Mitch Easter (R.E.M, Wilco, Pavement, Drive by Truckers) and his Fidelitorium Recordings studio facility in Kernersville, NC to be the ideal fit for harnessing the band’s southern Americana sound while giving it an old-school touch – recording the entire album on analog 2” tape.
Since forming in Roanoke, Virginia in 2012, The Floorboards have toured extensively throughout the East Coast, sharing stages with Dwight Yoakam, Darryl Scott, Tim O’Brien, Yarn, Los Colognes, Royal Southern Brotherhood, Nora Jane Struthers, Will Overman, and many more.
"If you’re an alt-country kind of a person, do yourself a favor and check this crew out. Even if you’re not into all of that, I’m betting you’ll turn into a head-bobber even if you don’t start cutting a rug." - Jeremy Sanchez HomeGrown Music Network
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