Justin: Why it’s time you joined the bluegrass bandwagon

If you think all bluegrass fans look like they just popped up from a cornfield on “Hee Haw,” then you’ve never seen Greensky Bluegrass. At a House of Blues concert in Boston last month, the band jammed with a Pink Floyd-inspired light show, echo effects on vocals and a smattering of obscenities, delighting a largely 20-something crowd that probably thinks Flatt & Scruggs is a law firm.

“We spent a lot of time saying we weren’t bluegrass, because we didn’t want to be labeled. But it’s in our damn title,” dobroist Anders Beck said backstage an hour before the show. “Now it’s sort of cool and kind of surreal. We’re taking the music further with these instruments and it’s awesome.”

Minnesotans will have lots of opportunities in the upcoming months to ride this new wave of unrestrained bluegrass through artists like the Lil Smokies (April 9 at Turf Club), Duluth’s own Trampled by Turtles (April 19 at Pablo Center in Eau Claire, Wis.) and the Devil Makes Three (May 17 at First Avenue). Greensky, originally scheduled to take over Palace Theatre later this month, has moved that gig to Oct. 11. Don’t be surprised if their version of Prince’s “When Doves Cry” graces its ever-changing set list.

“I remember when festivals would not book Greensky because we were too weird,” said Beck, showing off elaborate tattoos on both arms. “Guess what? The festivals we started playing are still alive. The others are dead.”

Even if you have no intention of checking out those hot acts, you’ve probably already gotten a taste of bluegrass — and loved it. Taylor Swift and Beyoncé incorporated banjo into their pop tunes. Sierra Ferrell, who just won four Grammys, leans into an Appalachian twang. Rock god Robert Plant got a new life after teaming up with fiddler Alison Krauss.

It’s possible some of their songs will lead you far enough down the rabbit hole that you’ll eventually want to experience more traditional acts like Béla Fleck, who will be at the Dakota on March 24 and 25.

That’s what happened to Beck. His mom started dropping him off at Grateful Dead shows in Philadelphia when he was just 15.

“I went the Jerry Garcia route,” he said. “I wondered, ‘Where do these songs come from?’ Pretty soon, you’re back at Flatt and Scruggs and Bill Monroe. I wasn’t planning to go there. It just sort of happened.”

Those ready to embark on their own deep dive might want to start with Della Mae, an all-female band out of Boston that will play the Dakota on April 13. Like the Chicks, they turn female empowerment into the grounds for a dance party.

“There’s a lot of young women who might not think they like bluegrass, but they come out of the woodwork for us, because they’re super-stoked to see an all-female band onstage,” lead singer Cecilia Woodsmith said in a phone interview right after wrapping up a songwriting lesson with a 16-year-old student.

Those who have seen Della Mae in the past know they are writing about a lot more than moonshine and murder.

The last time the band played the Dakota, a table of women stood and waved their napkins during “Headlight,” which Woodsmith wrote during the peak of the #MeToo movement about standing up to abuse.

“Every time we do that song, I’ve had to hold someone in my arms after the show as they’ve cried,” she said. “As much as I love that song, I can’t do that every night.”

You’ll also find artists tackling contemporary issues at more traditional festivals.

There was plenty of square dancing and old-timey jam sessions at the Minnesota Bluegrass Winter Weekend in Plymouth earlier this month. But you also had the Roe Family Singers, a Minneapolis-based group, open its set with “Don’t Worry About the Rich Man,” a toe-tapping number that resonates with anyone reeling from the current price of eggs.

Ellen Stanley, who plays under the stage name Mother Banjo and hosts KFAI-FM’s “Womenfolk,” said festivals are becoming more diverse and edgy.

“It kind of feels like the punk scene,” said Stanley, who will be performing at Hook & Ladder Theater on Thursday as part of a bill that also includes mandolin player Brent Fuqua. “People are saying, ‘I want to play this weird old music.’”

But Stanley admits the genre still lacks diversity.

You could see a few young people of color earlier this month at the Winter Weekend’s Grass Seeds Academy, a program that provides mentorship and exposure to musicians under age 17. One of the students more than held his own while sitting in with Blue Groove Bluegrass despite having only two days to learn their songs.

The festival also booked a room for LGBTQ musicians to jam together.

Woodsmith admits that not all regions of the country are eager to diversify their bluegrass festivals and concerts, but those are becoming the exceptions.

“If you’re a musician at a rock festival, you don’t get offers to be put up in people’s homes for a week,” she said. “There’s something special about the bluegrass community. It just needs to become more widespread.”