Punch Brothers Bring Hell On Church Street to the Southern Theatre February 14

Punch Brothers are mandolinist Chris Thile, guitarist Chris Eldridge, bassist Paul Kowert, banjoist Noam Pikelny, and violinist Gabe Witcher. Their accolades include a Grammy for best folk album for their 2018 release, All Ashore, and praise from the media, including the Washington Post which said, "With enthusiasm and experimentation, Punch Brothers take bluegrass to its next evolutionary stage, drawing equal inspiration from the brain and the heart." The band is touring in support of their 2022 release, Hell on Church Street—a reimagining of bluegrass great Tony Rice’s landmark album, Church Street Blues.

CAPA presents Punch Brothers at the Southern Theatre (21 E. Main St.) on Monday, February 14, at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $39-$59 and can be purchased in-person at the CBUSArts Ticket Center (39 E. State St.), online at www.capa.com, or by phone at (614) 469-0939.

In November of 2020, when the world felt so full of uncertainty, Punch Brothers did the one thing they could rely on—stood in a circle and made music together. After quarantining, a little rehearsal, and a few Zoom calls, a week-long recording session has culminated in their new record, Hell on Church Street—a reimagining of Bluegrass great Tony Rice’s landmark album, Church Street Blues.

This band of virtuosi had spent more than a decade changing the face of acoustic music, stretching the limitations of instruments and influencing a generation of young musicians, but life has a way of keeping a band from getting in the same room. Thile elaborates that “these sessions were a reminder for me of what’s really important. I felt silly having this band take up so little of my creative year; it reminded me that us five together is critical to my happiness.”

Church Street Blues was Tony Rice’s great statement. Rice had already made his name as a member of the legendary bluegrass band JD Crowe and The New South and pushed the boundaries of string music as a founding member of the David Grisman Quartet, but this album was him on his own, stripped back to just his guitar, his voice, and an inspired collection of the songs. Performing songs by heavyweights like Gordon Lightfoot and bluegrass founder Bill Monroe, Rice’s interpretations of these songs and tunes have since become the standard.

Punch Brothers formed in 2006. Its first Nonesuch record, Punch, was released in 2008 and combined elements of the band’s many musical interests. In 2009, they began a residency at NYC’s intimate Lower East Side club, The Living Room, trying out new songs and ultimately spawning Antifogmatic (2010). In 2012, the band released Who’s Feeling Young Now?, which Q praised for its ‘astonishing, envelope-pushing vision’ while Rolling Stone said, “The acoustic framework dazzles–wild virtuosity used for more than just virtuosity.” Their 2015 album, The Phosphorescent Blues, addresses with straight-up poignancy and subversive humor the power and the pitfalls of our super-connected world.