Within the realm of bluegrass, there are two artists currently taking the scene by storm: Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle. While Strings has ascended to the arena level with the help of his almost frighteningly loyal fans – a remarkable feat – Tuttle has followed close behind on her own terms. Since releasing her 2022 album Crooked Tree, the one-time prize-winning guitar player has garnered numerous awards and accolades, including a Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album. All of this is well-deserved as Tuttle is the full package who can flat pick her ass off, write songs with depth in addition to fun and catchy material, and sing her heart out. Her latest album City of Gold finds Tuttle and her band Golden Highway continuing to evolve their bluegrass into a sound that is more approachable for listeners outside of the genre. This may also be why they have sold out nearly every date on their Road to El Dorado tour, including their stop at Portland, Oregon’s Aladdin Theater on Tuesday, October 10th.
With the small theater already packed full of eager Molly Tuttle fans, rising talent Cristina Vane eased them into the festivities with a solo set that found her versatile approach to music on full display. Vane has gained a considerable following on Instagram with videos showing off her guitar skills, and onstage in Portland she showed the audience that her talent is more than social media content. She made good use of the slide guitar on “Make Myself Me Again” done in the style of North Mississippi Hill Country blues, her soulful rendition of Blind Willie Johnson’s “Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning,” and the fun new tune “Getting High In Hotel Rooms.” Songs like “Traveling Blues,” “Sending All My Love” (with a tease of the Grateful Dead’s “New Speedway Boogie” and “You Ain’t Special” were played on electric guitar and featured impassioned singing, while Vane eventually busted out her banjo for tunes like “Nashville Small Town Blues.” Switching between three different guitars and playing her special mix of folk, soul, and blues, Vane charmed her audience with a grace that looked effortless.
Dressed sharp, Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway took the stage and fired off their set with the bright harmonies and heavy fiddle playing of “Evergreen, OK.” Songs from City of Gold made up a healthy chunk of the set, with the old West cowboy tune “El Dorado” (with some fine flat-picking from Molly Tuttle), the bouncy “Side Saddle,” and pro-weed anthem “Down Home Dispensary” all making appearances out of the gate. She shared funny quips about sharing a last name with banjo player Kyle Tuttle before the two played a heartfelt and slightly humorous duet of “Yosemite.” The band would get to show off their instrumental chops on the feisty bluegrass instrumental “Open Water” led by fiddle player Bronwyn Keith-Hynes. Though there were plenty of solos throughout the night, the band rarely veered into jam grass territory, showing restraint with just the right amount of intensity during songs like their cover of the Grateful Dead’s “Dire Wolf” that segued into a version of “Over the Line” that hit with a train-barreling-down-the-mountain speed and saw each band member stepping out with rapid-fire solo work.
One of the major highlights of the evening came from a combo of their ominous number “Alice in the Bluegrass” leading right into a take on Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” played with plenty of reverb, intrigue, and psychedelic orchestral flare only to follow it up with bassist Shelby Means grabbing the vocal reins on the uptempo old-timey tune “Sleepy-Eyed John.” The band left the stage and Tuttle took requests before ultimately knocking out a stunning solo take on the Dead’s “Standing On The Moon” that truly exemplified her vocal strength. For the final stretch of the show, the band would ratchet up the energy on both “Dooley’s Farm” and “Castilleja” as each one featured monster solos in the round.
Over the course of more than ninety minutes, Tuttle and her band delivered a sprawling set that captured their individual talents as well as their power as a band. Though you could hardly call their sound traditional, they gave the audience everything one wants from a bluegrass performance but with heightened energy. Following the rapped ode to debauchery “Where the Wild Things Are,” Tuttle removed her wig as she shared her story of growing up with alopecia and feeling different before heading towards the finish line with “Crooked Tree,” one of her best songs that at this moment felt powerfully emotional. Besides being a standout moment of the show and one of the last songs of the night, this performance showed just how strong of a connection Tuttle has made with her fans and why her star only continues to rise.
