The Vintage Martins, an acoustic/bluegrass duo consisting of Bud Bierhaus and Eric Uglum, have signed with Eastwood Records for a new album, Traveled, due in April of 2018.
It’s an interesting pairing for both label and artists. Eastwood is a Louisville, KY-based company that, despite being in the Bluegrass State, have not worked with bluegrass artists in the past. They take an interesting approach for an indie label, in that they also provide booking services for their artists with an in-house agent on staff. With an artist service-centered approach, they believe they can win acts away from larger labels by providing opportunities the bigger companies don’t offer.
For the Martins, the partnership allows them to book shows as a duo (two old guitars and two strong vocalists), as a trio featuring Ron Block on banjo, or as a full bluegrass ensemble adding Uglum’s sons, Christian and Austin Ward, on fiddle and bass, respectively. Both Bierhaus and Uglum are established bluegrass veterans on the California circuit who have played together in various formulations for 30 years.
Last month Eric and Bud performed at the Logandale Fall Festival in Las Vegas, where they met with Eastwood President, Wes Allen, and Booking Agent, Debby Clickenbeard. Following their festival performance and a meeting with Wes and Debby, a contract was signed to work together.
Eastwood has set a date of April 27 for the release of Traveled, which they will mark with a show from The Vintage Martins on the 2018 Louisville Muse Cruise, a riverboat excursion that benefits regional charities.
Debby shared these photos from Logandale.
You can find out more about The Vintage Martins online.
