POSTPONED: Faux Paws presented by Rainshadow Concerts

APOLOGIES, EVERYONE. THIS SHOW HAS BEEN CANCELED AND WILL BE RESCHEDULED.

Sending our love and best wishes to the members of the band, we look forward to them announcing a replacement date in the near future.

Tickets: $20 each online at https://www.ticketstorm.com/e/29165/t/ or $25 cash at the door.

Rainshadow Recording welcomes The Faux Paws, featuring Port Hadlock’s own Chris Miller, Sunday January 21 at 7:30pm at The Palindrome at Eaglemount Cidery, 1893 S. Jacob Miller Rd. Series sponsors are Corvus Crafts Printing and Robin’s Nest BnB. Media sponsor for this series is KPTZ-FM radio.

The Faux Paws have a problem. They’re a triangle band in a land of circles. Musically impossible to describe, they don’t even fit into today’s often hyphenated-genre world. No fan, industry expert, nor member of the band can seem to sum up this band’s sound. They continue to remain a singularly unique outfit in the acoustic music community, always on the fringes, always memorable and with an increasing number of die-hard fans who feel like they’ve uncovered a secret.

Is it bluegrass? Not usually. Old-time? Occasionally. Is it Celtic? Can’t quite say that. Is it Folk? Americana? Jazz? Singer-songwriter? None of the above, but members of the Paws have deep ties to all of these traditions and blend their elements effortlessly to serve whatever musical idea is being presented. So what can we say? This band takes risks. They’re dynamic, exciting, sincere, irreverent, infectious, and surprising. They move deftly between moods, influences and instruments but always maintaining a “groove” that pulses through the music like a heartbeat (you may not always be aware it’s there but it gives the thing life).

A Faux Paws live show is an explosive roller coaster ride that brings the audience along. Virtuosity on the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and saxophone, sure, but also vulnerability, personal lyrics, tight 3-part brother harmonies, playful interplay, intricately arranged details and soaring improvisations. With the considerable success and praise the band has seen since coming out of the pandemic the Paws decided to add long-time friend and collaborator Zoe Guigueno (Fish & Bird, Della Mae) to their touring outfit on upright bass whenever possible. Zoe deepens the group’s already massive sound while freeing each member up for more creative expression on their various instruments.

Brothers Andrew and Noah VanNorstrand grew up playing contra dance music with their musician mother in the band Great Bear. Based in upstate New York, Great Bear gained a strong reputation in the niche world of folk-dance music, touring the country for eighteen years, releasing numerous albums and starting their own dance festival called The Groove.

The two VanNorstrand brothers met Chris Miller at a music camp in New York called Ashokan. “I had never heard of contra dance music before,” says Miller, who’s primary instrument is saxophone. “But as soon as we began casually jamming together, there was this incredible musical synergy.” Miller grew up in Florida, and he was enamored with bluegrass and studied jazz before going on to play with GRAMMY nominated Cajun-country band The Revelers. “The most important part of my musical background is that it’s all about fitting in and complementing other music. How can I uplift the melody, how can I get different sounds out of whatever instrument I’m playing?” explains Miller, who also plays banjo, dobro, and clarinet, among other instruments. For the VanNorstrand brothers, who had developed an intense musical “mind-meld” over nearly two decades of playing together, the addition of Miller brought a welcome interruption of old habits, while simultaneously tying together the big picture sounds that they were attempting to reach. “Chris is somewhat of a musical chameleon, and he can play lots of different instruments. But what he plays is so right in a big picture sense that it’s irrelevant what instrument he ends up picking,” explains Andrew.

Since meeting in 2012, the trio have toured across North America several times, sometimes under the name The Faux Paws, sometimes as part of other larger ensembles. But due to their commitments to other bands and musical projects, the timing was never right to focus on making The Faux Paws a priority. Instead, they took their time learning about different styles of music from one another, and finding where their interests and skills could create unexpected and exciting new sounds. “I love super glossy pop music, and Chris is always pushing more of a jazz influence,” says Noah, “we all have a strong background in dance music, so almost everything we do has rhythm and groove, and is based around hook and feel.” The band never had a geographic home base, so it is unsurprising that much of the music on their debut album revolves around traveling the country and experiencing new places. On “Child of The Great Lakes,” Andrew digs into both his connection and his disconnect with his hometown on Lake Ontario, singing “I was never gonna stay/and you were never gonna leave.” Later tunes and songs are named for Winchester, Virginia, Montauk, Long Island, and Southport, North Carolina. The standout opening track, Fourth Decade, showcases the phenomenal and unique fiddle playing of Noah VanNorstrand, accompanied by both Andrew and Chris on two banjos. The marriage of rhythm and melody is delicious and addictive, immediately drawing the listener into the rest of the album, which does not disappoint with its variety and depth. It may have taken The Faux Paws ten years to make their debut album, but those years have clearly not gone to waste.

Now, with an experimental but cohesive vision, the trio brings together seemingly unrelated musical elements into one joyful and distinctive collection, deeply rooted in the raw humanity of folk dance and music traditions.

Tickets: $20 each online at https://www.ticketstorm.com/e/29165/t/ or $25 cash at the door.
More information: Matt Miner 503-484-8196