Ones to Watch in 2011: Pearl and The Beard

    I’m BEYOND excited to see one of my favorite live bands tonight here in Cambridge, MA. If you haven’t caught a Pearl and The Beard show yet, you’re really missing out. No…really. You’re missing out! The Brooklyn, NY-based trio is currently in the midst of a U.S. tour in support of their latest album, Killing The Darlings, which came out May 10th on Family Records.

    Pearl and The Beard are three former strangers (Jocelyn Mackenzie, Emily Hope Price and Jeremy Styles) who met in New York and have been making beautiful music ever since.  It’s easy to pigeonhole the band into the folk category (not that there’d be anything wrong with that) but they are really so much more.

    “Pearl and the Beard is three voices, one cello, one guitar, one glockenspiel, one melodica, several drums, one accordion, ninety-six teeth, and one soul.”

    “Folk-leaning” is definitely a good way to describe Pearl and The Beard.  They’re music is made up of gorgeous three-part harmonies, foot-stomping/hand-clapping beats and most importantly…a sense of humor.  Seeing these guys perform is always half the fun.  Each member’s personality really comes through, in both the performance as well as in the songwriting.  If you can, you really should catch one of their gigs.  A good time is certain to be had by all.

    Pearl and the Beard – Sweetness by hearhearmusic

    Back in June of last year I did a post featuring Pearl and The Beard‘s unique-sounding Will Smith medley (“Men In Black,” “Miami,” & “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It“) – still as amazing as it was when I first heard it.  As a special treat, check out their brilliant song “Sweetness,” up above and if you like what you hear you can download it for free below. I’m also giving you the band’s new single, “Reverend” as an added bonus.

    You can also check out some live performances that Pearl and The Beard did over on Sleepover Shows, a super cool blog, where the webmasters actually host bands at their place for a “sleepover” and impromptu performance.  Really cool idea, right?  Check out Pearl and The Beard doing three songs – “Sweetness,” “Hot Volcano” and “Prodigal Daughter.” The new album, Killing The Darlings, was produced by Franz Nicolay and is available now everywhere.  Check out the full list of remaining tour dates below and get out to see Pearl and The Beard! You won’t be sorry. I promise.

    Tour Dates:

    06.16 TT the Bear’s, 11:30pm (Cambridge, MA)
    06.18 Oak and the Ax, 8pm (Biddeford, ME)
    06.23 Garfield Artworks, 8pm (Pittsburgh, PA)
    06.26 The Blind Tiger, 8pm (Greensboro, NC)
    06.27 The Get Down, 8pm (West Asheville, NC)
    06.28 Caledonia Lounge, 8pm (Athens, GA)
    06.29 The Pinhook, 8pm (Durham, NC)
    06.30 Blue Moon Cafe, 8pm (Shepherdstown, WV)
    07.01 The Red Palace, 8pm (Washington, DC)
    07.07 Music Hall of Williamsburg, 8pm (Brooklyn, NY)

    Check out Pearl and the Beard on the web: