Sinner Friends may not be a familiar name to a lot of bluegrass people, but the two people involved in this duo side project will be.
Grace van’t Hof has been on the bluegrass circuit for some years now. Working currently on banjo with Chris Jones & The Night Drivers, she had previously filled the same role with Bill and The Belles, and was the banjo player with Della Mae back when they still had a bluegrass focus. Conner Vlietstra is guitarist for The Price Sisters, and a serious student of old time music in the Appalachian region.
Together they get to concentrate on the pre-bluegrass sounds they both love, using a variety of acoustic instruments including banjos, guitars, and ukuleles in different combinations.
Today they have released an EP, Miss You, featuring six tracks taken from some old time classics, plus originals written by Grace and Conner in a similar style. One of which is their version of this Louvin Brothers gem, While You’re Cheatin’ On Me, first released by Charlie and Ira in 1960 on their My Baby’s Gone record.
Have a listen to Sinner Friends’ cut.
The title Miss You is meant to express how much Sinner Friends had yearned to return to performing during the COVID-19 shutdowns, which is when the album was conceived and recorded. They are offering it for download from their web site as a $10, or ‘pay what you wish,’ item online.
