The Devil Makes Three

With six studio albums and almost 20 years under their belt, longstanding Americana triumvirate The Devil Makes Three (TDM3) continues to write, tour, and play as hard as ever they have.

Consisting of frontman and main songwriter Pete Bernhard on lead vocals and acoustic guitar, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Cooper McBean on acoustic guitar, banjo and harmony vocals, and welcoming stand-up bassist and harmony vocalist MorganEve Swain (Brown Bird, The Huntress and Holder of Hands), TDM3 is known for dark, literary music rooted in the troubadour traditions of wandering folk, Delta blues, whiskey-soaked ragtime, and reckless rock ‘n’ roll.

The band’s journey could be deemed worthy of a novel. Their self-titled 2002 debut brought early success, yielding the now-classic “Old Number Seven,” “Graveyard,” “The Plank,” and more as the band organically attracted a die-hard following through constant touring, frenetic live shows, and subsequent hit albums.

Each critically-acclaimed and beloved by fans, these releases include Longjohns, Boots and a Belt (2004), Do Wrong Right (2009) and 2014’s I’m a Stranger Here, which marked the band’s first appearance on the Billboard Top 200. TDM3’s 2016 covers album, Redemption & Ruin gained the group their second #1 bow and fourth consecutive top-five debut on the Billboard Top Bluegrass Albums Chart. This pivotal album also garnered widespread acclaim from the likes of Entertainment Weekly, American Songwriter, The Boston Globe and more.

The Devil Makes Three’s 2018 release, Chains Are Broken, is considered the trio’s most sophisticated effort to date, exhibiting a willingness to “push beyond [their] somewhat cult audience” (American Songwriter). Chains Are Broken continues to resonate with fans thanks to Pete Bernhard’s mature, provocative lyrics and vocals and guitar/banjo aficionado Cooper McBean’s signature style.

Over the years, TDM3 has cast an unbreakable spell on audiences everywhere from Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo, to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, Hangout Fest, and Shaky Knees. They are currently writing a new album of original material, scheduled to be released in the latter half of 2021.

From the misty, pine-covered hills of the Pacific Northwest hail the Bridge City Sinners, who span the continuum from prohibition era jazz to Appalachian death folk. This traditional string band line up bends the meaning of the word genre, Playing festivals from Punk Rock Bowling, to Muddy Roots, to Oregon’s Bluegrass String Summit. They started their journey by busking on sidewalks across the country and  now this supergroup of musicians find themselves on the national tour circuit. The Sinners still hold true to the DIY mentality of putting albums out on a self made record label, Flail Records. They recently hit #70 on the Billboard charts, top current album sales, for the week of September 4th 2021 for their album “Unholy Hymns”.  With talented musicianship and a punk as f***! live show, this is one band you don’t want to miss.