Jeff austin of ymsb

[MT_player]

I recently listened to a show he did with Benny Galloway, just vocals, mandolin and guitar. I never realized before what a great player he is-good solos, great accompaniment, all around awesome. I feel like he's a little underrated or maybe just less known than some other players.

[northfolk]

I have seen YMSB once. I have listened to some of their stuff as a band and individually or with others. They sound much better recorded than live IMO? The one thing about their live shows is that they play way too loud; and the crowd is as well? Just my opinion of course? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[homeslice]

I wouldnt say that he's underrated, but maybe just not talked about as much on this forum. He certainly should be. Drew Emmitt is another one that doesnt get much attention on here, but is as good a player as anyone out there....if not the best!

There's a video of Jeff doing a "Hartfordy" version of Cuckoos Nest floating around on YouTube thats just great!

[MT_player]

I wouldnt say that he's underrated, but maybe just not talked about as much on this forum. He certainly should be. Drew Emmitt is another one that doesnt get much attention on here, but is as good a player as anyone out there....if not the best!

There's a video of Jeff doing a "Hartfordy" version of Cuckoos Nest floating around on YouTube thats just great!
Drew Emmitt rules

[Snakebeard Jackson]

Jeff Austin has got to be seen live to really get his sound.
The albums arn't as good, but there are a lot of live bootlegs of shows that are great.
I don't think they are to loud. but I like loud music.

[MT_player]

YMSB is alot like the Dead or Phish-their albums are just ok but the live shows are awesome. Part of their sound comes from the spontaneity and risk that comes with playing before a live audience. If they wanted my advice, I would suggest that they only release live albums and forget about the studio stuff.

[TeleMark]

I've seen YMSB a bunch of times, and like the Dead or Phish (as mentioned above) they shine in a live environment, and can be hit-or-miss, but I've always had a great time at their shows. I think Jeff is a solid, original player. He may not be the best I've heard, but he brings a ton of energy in his playing and singing.

I also think that their songwriting is top-notch, especially Ben Kauffman's stuff (I know, the thread is about JA, but I need to get this in). I think songs like "Mother's Only Son" and "Looking Back Over My Shoulder" deserve inclusion into the larger BG canon.

[lovethemf5s]

I have seen YMSB once. #I have listened to some of their stuff as a band and individually or with others. #They sound much better recorded than live IMO? #The one thing about their live shows is that they play way too loud; #and the crowd is as well? #Just my opinion of course? # # http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif
I saw them play a show right after Sam Bush a few years back and they were both just as loud. Neither was as loud as Cadillac Sky though.

[TeleMark]

Loud has very little to do with the band. It's not like they're flogging their instruments harder. The sound guy at the venue controls that, and I'd imagine that it's impossible to judge from the stage how loud or soft the music is.

Besides, they're not as loud as The Who.

[MT_player]

I also think that their songwriting is top-notch, especially Ben Kauffman's stuff (I know, the thread is about JA, but I need to get this in). #I think songs like "Mother's Only Son" and "Looking Back Over My Shoulder" deserve inclusion into the larger BG canon.
A lot of the songs they play are also written by Benny 'Burl' Galloway, an independent songwriter. His stuff is really good and YMSB does a great job playing them.
Regarding the loudness of the band: I saw an interview online with the band where they admitted that they try to cultivate a rock concert atmosphere at their shows, hence the loud volume. Also, many of their fans come from a jam band background, so none of them would mind the volume.

[sean808080]

i've caught a ymsb show live and enjoyed the music and the energy of the crowd immensely. even more telling is i brought a friend who was not an acoustic music lover, and he totally enjoyed the show and could see why so many fans were into it.

i would agree that their live recordings do a great job of bringing back smiles to folks that have been there first hand. i'd go see them again in a heart beat.

[Ken Olmstead]

Isn't this the guy that has only played mandolin for 3-4 years? My friend is always quoteing this factoid. Is it true? Does anyone know his background??

[man dough nollij]

According to this (http://yondermountain.com/), he discovered the mandolin in 1994, and started playing in 1995.

[bienkow1]

Jeff Austin is sick. #I am a big fan of YMSB and his...he did some mandolin/guitar duo stuff with Chris Castino of the Big Wu too, and that was excellent. #HE is a character and a blast to watch perform.

YMSB gets grouped into that jam-band genre too much...they really are a tight BG group and don't meander like that stereotyping would insinuate.

[Ken Olmstead]

According to this (http://yondermountain.com/), he discovered the mandolin in 1994, and started playing in 1995.
Yup, and considering it is HIM who is writing it, I believe my friend needs an YMSB history lesson! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif Still great band and excellent mandolin player! Big thanks to the guy in Antarctica!!! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[Ken Olmstead]

oops, Hold the phone! The first YMSB albulm was released in 9/99. So I see what he is saying. Now that's pretty dang impressive!! 4 years start to first album!!

[Pen]

I'm a big Yonder fan and have been attending their shows for years (man some of those old Fox shows 8-9 years back where fun). Jeff Austin is a good mandolin player - but an excellent/great entertainer. He's a good player, but nowhere near the top of the heap.

Adam Aijala on guitar though - that's another story. That guy can flat out pick. IMO, the talent of the band.

Again, YMSB is about the only band I go out of my way to see anymore. The talant of a band or player isn't always entirely in their picking skill.

[danielpatrick]

It's funny you would post this, I've just been listening to the same show and was thinking the same exact thing. That show was played without a PA. His picking is much more traditional on that recording. I really like YMSB alot but his live sound is just way to clucky. He uses a mic on solos and a pickup for rythm but besides being louder there is no difference in his tone.

p.s. I've got a bootleg with Thile sitting in with them for the first time and man there is no mistaking who is who that's fo sho!

[MT_player]

It's funny you would post this, I've just been listening to the same show and was thinking the same exact thing. That show was played without a PA. His picking is much more traditional on that recording. I really like YMSB alot but his live sound is just way to clucky. He uses a mic on solos and a pickup for rythm but besides being louder there is no difference in his tone.

p.s. I've got a bootleg with Thile sitting in with them for the first time and man there is no mistaking who is who that's fo sho!
Do you mean that you think he sounds clucky on the live tape? His tone was the first thing I noticed-very nice. I wish he sounded that way when he amps up.

Thile beats him on the mando but I would rather hear Jeff sing anyday http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[danielpatrick]

No, the sound on the live tape was killer!!! It's when he plays with Yonder on the big stage where his sound just doesn't blow my mind. It sounds sort of harsh when he plays amped.

I actually like Ben's voice best of all, neither Jeff nor Chris blow my mind vocally but I'd be happy if I could play half as good as either of them. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Kevin Briggs]

Neither was as loud as Cadillac Sky though.
Oh, God....

[Kevin Briggs]

I'll add that I love YMSB, and I concur that they are one of the only live acts I'll go to see, aside from bluegrass festivals. I have a live recording from 1998 where they are clearly pretty green, and Jeff's picking was more conventional. It's still experimental and doesn't always hit the mark, but he does more Monroe licks and hints of some Grisman stuff.

These days, and for the past five or six years, I think he has grown very comfortable on the mandolin. He has said in interviews that they wants to recreate the energy of a band with drums, but without the drums. i think they accomplish that mission, and he does a good job of keeping the pace moving. Jeff is basically a reock 'n' roll, acoustic mandolin player who plays in and became a musician in a band that features bluegrass instrumentation. Dude, when I heard YMSB play "Crazy Train" it was killer. Right before it I think they played "Whiskey Before Breakfast." How's that for a diverse set list?

As far as how he rates compared to Drew Emmitt...? I think Emmitt is in that upper-tier of mandolin players, and revels a bit more in the traditional sound. He clearly has actually studied the mandolin, and has made attempts to formally recreate traditional bluegrass music. I mean, I can't see Jeff Austin doing a mandolin workshop with Sam Bush, Tim O' Brien, and Matt Flinner, but Drew Emmitt has.

It's a mistake to judge Jeff Austin on how much he may or may not sound like Sam Bush or Adam Steffy. He's more like Mike Bloomfield, but not quite so amazing.

[garyblanchard]

I saw YMSB live a year ago and was greatly impressed. I am a jam-band fan as well as a lover of traditional acoustic music and felt they combined the best of both worlds. I tend to disagree with bienkow1 a bit in that YMSB can play some good traditional sounding bluegrass, but they can also do some nice free-form jamming as well. That was one of my favorite concerts. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[hedding]

as long as they keep bringing new people to bluegrass music they're alright with me.

[Geoff B]

I can rightly attribute my early fascination with bluegrass on seeing YMSB at the LODO music fest in 2000 or 2001. I also have a lot of friends who's music is "bluegrass" but do not know who Bill Monroe is-- mainly due to YMSB. I think as a gateway into bluegrass they've done an awesome thing for the younger generation who do not initially buy traditional bg music, but some day probably will.

[MT_player]

When I first got into mandolin, YMSB was one of the first bands I listened to. Although I love trad. bluegrass now, at first it seemed kind of hokey to me. If not for YMSB, I don't think I would have gotten into Bill Monroe, Frank Wakefield, and other traditional sounding players.

[sean808080]

i somehow suspect ymsb would enjoy finding out that they're a "gateway band" LOL

http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[Snakebeard Jackson]

I think Yonder Mountian is more of the "ambasssador of bluegrass" then the self proclaimed Ricky Scaggs. I'm willing to bet YMSB brings more brand new listeners into the music. Especally with the young.

[lovethemf5s]

I mean, I can't see Jeff Austin doing a mandolin workshop with Sam Bush, Tim O' Brien, and Matt Flinner, but Drew Emmitt has.
We must have a Drew Emmitt fan here. I can see Jeff doing a workshop with any of these people. When I saw Jeff Austin share the stage with Sam Bush they were trading breaks back and forth and I felt Jeff held his own. Guess I'm a Jeff Austin fan. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[woodwizard]

I love YMSB. I think calling them a Jam Band is really not that far off base. They really like to jam around. Got to see them when they were touring with the Flectones & Keller Williams. It seemed that the crowds are pretty loud & wild ... a party kinda crowd. Jamming seemed to be what the crowd wanted. It was fun. But if you are wanting to really relax and listen this kind of crowd won't let that happen.

[MT_player]

There's a recording floating around of Jeff Austin, Keller Williams, and the bass player from String Cheese Incident (I can't remember his name). They call themselves Grateful Grass and they do-you guessed it-Dead tunes in a bluegrass flavor.

Smokin'.

[birdman98]

I'd like to try some of that Grateful Grass stuff http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

Love the YMSB and especially Jeff's picking. It's fresh and downright groovy.

[MT_player]

Keller Williams is no slouch either

[TeleMark]

YMSB is touring with Keller Williams (doesn't he sell houses in his spare time?) this Summer/Fall... Planning on catching the Flagstaff show.

[Brandon Flynn]

Jeff Austin is a pretty good mandolin player. His playing sounds and reminds me of Sam Bush, as others have said. I've never seen them live, so I can't copletely evaluate his capabilities. Yonder Mountain is essentially a jam band live, but they are a very tight bluegrass band as well in the studio. I only have their first cd, and it is a very solid Bluegrass cd. I will say that Jeff Austin is probably less talented than the Banjo and Guitar player in YMSB. I've listened to a few extended jams that I've found online, and they are very fun to listen to. I like jam bands ok, and a jam band with mandolin is that much cooler.

[minnedolin]

I was coerced into that scene in high school when YMSB would play the Big Wu Family reunion in Black River Falls, Wizzy. Austin could probably show me up (and he'd let me know he could too)But honestly I've heard better pickin done by youngsters at bluegrass camps and festivals. Yonder was fun to watch though and Austin - one of my inspirations to seek out the mandolin. Once again I'm playing the role of the cynic!

[Pen]

I will say that Jeff Austin is probably less talented than the Banjo and Guitar player in YMSB

LOL - I can't believe I sound so down on YMSB. They are one of my favorite bands. But their banjo player isn't that great. If you listen to him, he drags. The way yonder pushes the pace, it can be pretty evident sometimes. Adam on guitar is awsome.

But regardless of whether they are "top notch" instrumentaly - they can flat out entertain. It's not always the best players that ppl like to see. As a band - they ARE top notch.

[seththedude]

I've been seeing YMSB for several years now and it is nice to see them get praise on the cafe.

I remember seeing the a few years ago (2003?) at Old Settlers down in Austin and they were headlining one of the nights. They started up Kentucky Mandolin Breakdown, which is one of the songs they will jam out quite a bit, and Ronnie McCoury and Billy Bright came out to join them. Everyone else left the stage and I was ready for some mando magic. Unfortunately, they couldn't get Ronnie's mike dialed in and the segment ended on a quiet note. I still wonder how great that could have been if the sound issues were worked out.

PS. The bass player for String Cheese Incident is Keith Mosley.

[Brandon Flynn]

Pen, I agree, they are excellent entertainers. I want to make sure that I also am not misinterpreted, I think YMSB is excellent.:)

[Kevin Briggs]

I'll third that. I think they are very good pickers, and I think they are great entertainers. I mean, you want to talk about energy? These gusy put it in their gigs every time. They are probably my favorite band right now.