<strong>Strand of Oaks</strong>
So everyone's prepared for Joe Pug because of all the videos but then I introduce Strand of Oaks which must be confusing. Tim comes out all trucker hat and quiet and simply kills everyone with that sound and that voice - all hushed urgency and dread with underlying hope. A friend comes up to me after the set and just stares at me for about three beats then says "Holy Shit". Exactly, I say.

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<strong>Joe Pug</strong>
On a Tuesday night in April Joe Pug kicks off The Billsville House Concert series. Yeah, we hear "the new Bob Dylan" once a week but there are few who can draw close to that comparison - Joe's one of them. He closes the show by asking me "Doug, is there something you want to hear?" The question jolts me out of the trance I've been in for the last 90 minutes induced by having one of my Top 5 performers of the last year playing music in our living room. I request "Call It What You Will" and Joe delivers an effortless, beautifully nuanced version that I'll remember always.

Call it what you will, I'm heartbroken still, words are just words.

<strong>Dan Mangan</strong>
Dan Mangan is "Big in Canada" but relatively unknown here. He agrees to play a show on the day before he is booked at the Albany Tulip Festival ($!!) and proceeds to literally kill it in front of a crowd who has no idea who this supremely talented guy is. A rousing "Robot's" ALMOST ends a set that brings us a batch of new songs off the record that quite a few critics will put in their top 10 releases of the year. We say ALMOST because Dan follows it up with an amazing rendition of Elliot Smith's "Waltz #2" that Dan calls a "kind of a perfect song". Dan's final on stage words are, essentially, praise for house concerts and music fans as he quotes Margaret Mead " Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

<object height="81" width="100%"> <param name="movie" value="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F14868758"></param> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F14868758" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object>  <span><a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts/waltz-2-elliott-smith-cover">Dan Mangan : Waltz #2 (Elliott Smith Cover)</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts">billsvillehouseconcerts</a></span> 

We stay up until 3AM learning more about the intricacies of Canadian politics (while drinking copius amounts of red wine) than I might have thought possible. In the morning, Dan leaves with his very own robot made from cardboard and duct tape and plays in front of a hometown crowd of 12,000 people a week later.

<strong>Guggenheim Grotto</strong>
What needs to be said about a perfect Berkshire night that ends like this? Other than it did not end until we sang a song by EVERY IRISH MALE SINGER until 3AM in the barn.

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<object height="81" width="100%"> <param name="movie" value="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F15139657"></param> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F15139657" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object>  <span><a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts/joe-pug-call-it-what-you-will">Joe Pug - Call It What You Will</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts">billsvillehouseconcerts</a></span> 

<strong>David Wax</strong>
So David and Suz show up and the crowd gets the feeling they are going to take off. Which they do. They connect with the crowd immediately (the donkey jawbone sure doesn't hurt) and lead everyone around the hallway and back into the living room for a crazy dance off. They'll go on to play the main stage at the Newport Folk Festival in just a few weeks.
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<strong>Sarah Borges</strong>
What needs to be said about Sarah Borges - at 8 1/2 months pregnant she can bring it like no one else. Sarah puts everyone in the room at ease with her self-deprecating humor and that rare ability to make you feel like you've known her for years in about 30 seconds. 

<object height="81" width="100%"> <param name="movie" value="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F18224703"></param> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F18224703" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object>  <span><a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts/live-the-life-i-sing-about-in">Live The Life I Sing About In My Songs</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts">billsvillehouseconcerts</a></span> 

<strong>Maryse Smith</strong> drove down from Burlington, VT after I harass her into performing. I'd only read about her and listened on her Bandcamp page. Lots of folks I respect up in Burlington are talking about her and I convince her to come and play for tips. Here's a woman with a lot to say and she does so with such an offbeat delivery that you can't help but pay attention. Sometimes Maryse shoves what should be too many syllables into a single line only to have them come out sounding fantastic on the other end. We're excited to see where Maryse goes.

<object height="81" width="100%"> <param name="movie" value="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F17506150"></param> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F17506150" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object>  <span><a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts/fast-one">Fast One</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts">billsvillehouseconcerts</a></span> 

<strong>Anais Mitchell</strong> brought her voice, guitar and songs to a eager and loving crowd on a muggy July night. I'm not exaggerating when I say the audience was transfixed the entire night. Anais played songs from "Hadestown" - one of the records on my "Best of 2010" list as well as a few new amazing tunes from her new record tentatively set for a February release. We basked in music, lyrical poetry and good spirits for almost two full hours. The night ended as one of these special evenings often does, with a full participation sing along to "Goodnight Irene". 

<object height="81" width="100%"> <param name="movie" value="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F19899001"></param> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param> <embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="https://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F19899001" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%"></embed> </object>  <span><a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts/01-how-long-goodnight-irene">How Long + Goodnight Irene</a> by <a href="http://soundcloud.com/billsvillehouseconcerts">billsvillehouseconcerts</a></span> 

<strong>Brown Bird</strong>
I introduce Brown Bird to a house full of about 45 people, hear one song, and then leave. Caroline misses most of the show as well because of what we'll call "kid logistics". I return to hear the final two songs and Caroline makes it back for the dying applause on the last song. David and MorganEve then steal our hearts by playing a seven song min-set for us after everyone has gone home including letting Kai sing all the words he has learned to "What Do You Do With A Drunken Sailor" thanks to the <a href="http://www.wtfestival.org/">Williamstown Theatre Festival</a>'s outdoor theater. 

Ethan and a few of the Circus Smirkus kids jam with the band into the night.
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<strong>Sarah Lee & Johnny</strong>
I confirm the gig with Johnny via a cell phone call in the parking lot of Stop & Shop. Fitting, for a show that is the closest to "local" that we've had. Sarah Lee & Johnny arrive humble, professional and then proceed to slay us with their close harmonies and dynamics. 

<strong>Kingsley Flood</strong>
We poach Kingsley Flood for an afternoon show before their late night appearance in Pittsfield. First show with the local Taco Truck in attendance and on a beautiful summer day we get the rollicking vibe and good time fun that only happens in these settings. Hey, Magic Hat is selling #9 in cans! And it's good!
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The Mommyheads
Jenny Owen Youngs
Darlingside
Swear and Shake
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Caroline Smith
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Sonya Kitchell // Elizabeth and the Catapult


Spirit Family Reunion
Liz Longley
Brown Bird
Joe Fletcher
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Jonah Tolchin
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Plume Giant
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Ethan puts up a web cam and pulls the sound from the mixer. Techy!

Cuddle Magic
Ellis Paul / Peyton Totchterman
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Jen Crowell / Good Good 
Chamberlin
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Guggenheim Grotto

Spirit Family Reunion // Hurray for the Riff Raff // Broken Wing Routine
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Wandering Rocks
Darlingside

Joe Fletcher
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Brown Bird
