Folk Alliance Band of the Day: Larry & Joe
Larry & Joe. // photo credit Zion McKnight
The Folk Alliance International Conference 2023 will be held February 1-5 at the Westin Crown Center Hotel. With over 100 artists performing over the course of five days, “crossing a diverse array of genres including Appalachian, Americana, Blues, Bluegrass, Celtic, Cajun, Global Roots, Hip-Hop, Old-Time, Singer-Songwriter, Spoken Word, Traditional, Zydeco, and various fusions,” it can be intimidating to figure out where to start.
We’ve selected a few artists we think you should make time to see, and we’ll be featuring one per day until the conference kicks off on Wednesday, Feb. 1.
Today’s feature is the duo of Larry & Joe, who—to be quite honest—initially grabbed us because of the banality of their name. We were not expecting two sharply-dressed individuals playing roots music that perfectly balances the music of Latin America with that of the hills of Tennessee, but as soon as we heard “Fiesta en Elorza,” we were hooked. It’s joyously melodious and is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of the musical abilities of this pair.
If you’re hooked, you’ll have several opportunities to catch them this weekend, and their debut album, Nuevo South Train (produced by Charlie Hunter), drops March 24.
“Larry & Joe, the duo of legendary Venezuelan Llanera musician and asylum-seeking migrant Larry Bellorín & GRAMMY-nominated Latingrass musician and activist Joe Troop (Che Apalache), proves that music has no borders. They perform a fusion of Venezuelan and Appalachian folk music on the harp, banjo, cuatro, fiddle, guitar, maracas, upright bass,” says a press release.
Larry & Joe play Saturday, Feb. 4, at 7:45 p.m. in Washington Park Place 1. You can also catch them Sunday, Feb. 5, at 5 p.m. at Americana Music Academy in Lawrence. Tickets for that show are available here.
You can find out more information on the 2023 Folk Alliance International Conference at Folk Alliance International’s website.
