The Gourds

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The Gourds' 1998 top-notch cover of Snoop Dogg's "Gin and Juice" dropped at a time when Napster (remember Napster?) was rife with mislabeled mp3 files; as such anyone who recognizes the version is likely to think it's by Phish or the Dave Matthews Band. Nothing could be further from the truth—a fan of the band is more likely to rock an ironic feed-store cap than sincere dreadlocks, but don't let that dissuade you. The Gourds' smooth blend of folky bluegrass and country twang goes down as easy as a Blue Moon beer as they walk a stumbling line between laid-back toe-tappers and grooves that beg you to shake the dust off your boots and dance. Their lyrics are chuckle-inducingly clever, too. In "Halleluja Shine," a rollicking jab at the major religions, they sing, "If you want to meet the Jesus, you gotta go down now brother/If you want to meet the Buddha, kill him on the road to glory," a reference to ninth-century Zen master Lin Chi's anti-authoritarian command to his students that "If you see a buddha, kill him!" The Gourds aren't so revolutionary, but they are damn good country. 21+.
Tue., Sept. 11, 8 p.m.