Rooted in fireside folk & bluegrass music, The Foothills and their new album Jennings Road Chronicles quickly evolves to span genres with a slightly spacey alt-rock edge driven by interwoven acoustic & electric guitars, vocal harmonies, subtle organs and a driving rhythm section.
The Foothills is an independent band (partially) based in Trout Lake, Washington at the base of Mount Adams. Primary songwriter Abe Cohen moved from Portland to Trout Lake in the summer of 2006 and was immediately taken by the quantity and quality of local musicians in this beautiful, quaint corner of the Columbia Gorge. In many ways, The Foothills debut album, Jennings Road Chronicles Vol. 1 (released August, 2009 and recorded in Trout Lake), is inspired by the amazing culture of Trout Lake … and the weekly fireside music jams that are the small town equivalent of “gigs”.
Prior to forming The Foothills, several members of the band played previously in the Portland, Oregon based Maggie’s Choice from 2002 to 2007. During this time, Maggie’s Choice released 3 independent albums. You can hear clips and reviews of Maggie’s Choice at maggieschoice.com
Abe and lead instrumentalist (guitar, mandolin) Mateo Bevington began playing music together in 1999 as an acoustic duo Casa Del Bev. After three years of writing and performing, they developed a healthy catalog of original material. In 2002, they joined with Mateo’s brother Sean to experiment with a more electrified / rockin sound. Chris Buehler, a long time friend of Sean’s and an accomplished vocalist, soon joined the band on bass guitar. After several months of gigging in small Portland clubs, the band wooed Marian Hammond to jump in on piano and keyboards. Marian, who had played around with various styles of jazz and modern piano since a young age, added a subtle texture to the band’s sound. Ultimately this was the beginning of Maggie’s Choice.
Soon after the 2006 release of the 3rd Maggie’s Choice album, Thoughts of June, Sean left the states for the UK where he has lived with his wife Janet ever since. To fill his (big) shoes, Loran Joseph has joined The Foothills as drummer and all around rock star (not to mention Eastern Oregon promotion and booking liaison).
The Foothills also features a couple of local Trout Lake musicians – Dave Wampler on accordion (Rested, Ambitious) and Kelly Sullivan on vocals (Fragments). The group is already working on preparations for “Vol. 2”, which will likely feature an even wider array of local talent. Stay tuned …
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