Based in Amsterdam, Barnyard Tea offer another example of how bluegrass music tends to transcend various cultures and defy boundaries, either real or imagined. So too, their’s is a sound that’s unapologetically upbeat and contemporary. At the same time, the trio — Frank de Boer (vocals, guitar, mandolin), Joost Abbel (vocals, banjo, guitar), and Edin Najetovic (vocals, bass) — fashion their arrangements around vocal harmonies and acoustic instrumentation in ways that keep a traditional focus intact.
The trio have made music together since they’ve known each other in their school days. “We started a rock band in high school and made a lot of noise on our electric guitars,” Abbel recalls. “The group disbanded when we went to university. During that time we all started playing acoustic instruments and developed an interest in roots music, inspired by O Brother, Where Art Thou? and The Seeger Sessions. We rebooted the band (without our drummer) and started playing songs from those albums, while busking in the streets of Amsterdam.”
They formed Barnyard Tea in 2012, spurred on by their shared passion for roots, bluegrass, and traditional music. In no time at all, they were performing throughout Europe, playing hundreds of shows in The Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, and Italy. In addition, they appeared at a number of major music gatherings, among them, Ferrara Busker’s Festival, Christmas Market at the Cologne Cathedral, Big Rivers Festival, Flat Mountain Folk & Roots Festival, the Rotterdam Bluegrass Festival, the Yeehaw Festival, and the Madness Festival.
“We got our lucky break when the Ferrara Buskers Festival, the biggest of its kind in the world, invited us to represent The Netherlands during their anniversary edition in 2012,” Abbel explains. “Playing multiple shows a day for two weeks in the Italian sun was the perfect way to transform Barnyard Tea into a tight trio.”
They initiated their recording career with two EPs of traditional covers prior to a decision to write music of their own.
“We started out playing covers, but over the years our focus has shifted to playing original material,” Abbel says. “In 2024 we released Train, a double album with 20 original train songs.”
Asked to describe their sound, Abbel referred to it as “Rowdy, stomping bluegrass. We combine folk, country, and a whiff of rock & roll in a Dutch approach to an American tradition,” he suggests. He goes on to cite the Soggy Bottom Boys, Bruce Springsteen’s Seeger Sessions Band, Bill Monroe, Johnny Cash, Flatt & Scruggs, Tony Rice, and the Osborne Brothers as their prime influences.
Happily, they’ve been well received by the folks back home.
“People like our music, even those who are generally unfamiliar with bluegrass,” Abbel adds. “They often request Country Roads and Mumford and Sons, or even just random pop songs. We don’t mind playing songs from other genres, because our shows are all about having a good time together. It’s a nice bonus if people get interested in bluegrass music after hearing us play.”
That helps explain why the band believe so fervently in the power of bluegrass.
“It’s real and honest music, made by people playing acoustic instruments,” Abbel insists. “Bluegrass brings joy into a world that’s chaotic and sad.”
Just so.
