Things are shaping up for North Carolina grassers Nu-Blu to have a mighty big summer in 2013.
Their next album, Ten, is slated for release until July 16 on Rural Rhythm, but they have made it available for digital download now from iTunes and other popular download sites.
Ten is a reference to the band’s 10th Anniversary working as Nu-Blu, fronted and managed by the husband/wife team of Daniel Routh on guitar and Carolyn Routh on bass. The two split lead singing duties, with Carolyn taking the lion’s share. The remainder of the quartet is Austin Koerner on mandolin and Levi Austin on banjo.
Nu-Blu is a group that flies under a lot of people’s radar. They work a very busy schedule and while it includes a good many festivals, many of their shows are in theaters and venues that don’t normally feature bluegrass. Daniel and Carolyn both work very hard on booking and promotion, with some impressive results coming to fruition this year.
Recently announced is a sponsorship agreement with Peterson Tuners, which has resulted in a shiny new bus wrap for the band. Nu-Blu can also boast of sponsorships from D’Addario strings, Sennheiser/Neumann microphones, and QSC speakers.
And because of these arrangements with major music companies, the band will be including roughly two dozen in-store appearances at Sam Ash Music locations across the US on their Ten Tour.
Announced to date are stops in…
- July 5 – King of Prussia, PA
- July 5 – Philadelphia, PA
- July 11 – Nashville, TN
- August 4 – Edison, NJ
- August 4 – Cherry Hill, NJ
- August 4 – Springfield, NJ
- August 5 – New York City, NY
- August 5 – Huntington, NY
- August 6 – White Plains, NY
- August 11 – New Haven, CT
- September 8 – Charlotte, NC
- October 6 – Raleigh, NC
- October 19 – Atlanta, GA
Further dates will be added over the coming months, and will be listed on the band’s web site as they are announced.
Marshall Johns with Peterson sees all positives in their arrangement with Nu-Blu.
“Peterson Tuners is very happy to be aligned with Nu-Blu and be a major sponsor for their Ten Tour. They’ve been advocates for the StroboClip tuner since its initial launch in 2010 and have turned on much of the bluegrass community to strobe tuning.
Their continued support through the Sam Ash Music chain will help drive home the often overlooked message of ‘the importance of proper tuning’ and showcase the StroboClip’s features.”
Daniel Routh tells us that they will offer clinics, meet-and-greets, and performances when they visit the Sam Ash locations
“We’re thrilled to be doing it, and it’s getting us a lot of attention already.”
Special offers from the band’s sponsors, including free downloads and BOGO deals will be available while the band is appearing in store.
