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It’s sometimes said that great bass playing vanishes, supporting the music without drawing attention to itself. But history also shows us that when the best bass players step forward as band leaders, remarkable things can happen. That’s why it’s time to pay heed to Missy Raines and the New Hip. Missy, a trailblazer in her field for as long as she’s been playing music, formed this dynamic quintet to bridge the musical worlds of newgrass, jazz, singer/songwriter and any others they take a notion to explore.
Raves and Reviews - Missy Raines & the New Hip
Missy Raines eyes early 2012 album |
Missy Raines, who has faced more than her share of criticism for straying beyond the bounds of bluegrass in recent years, is in the formative stages of putting together a new album that won’t appease any of her critics. The idea for the album started with an epiphany a few months back. “I woke up knowing that I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing – leading this band, ruffling a few feathers with this music,” she told Bluegrass Today. The band is Missy Raines and the New Hip. The music is jazz-tinged Americana, complete with drums and, at times, keyboards and other non-traditional bluegrass instruments. The band strayed beyond Missy’s bluegrass roots with its 2009 release, Inside Out on Compass Records. The new CD, scheduled for release next spring, will be in the same style, only with more emphasis on vocals instead of instrumentals. There’s one more difference with the new project. This will be her first concept album, with most of the songs built around a recurring theme that has been on her mind since her epiphany. That theme, she told me, is whether we all are called to do some specific thing, “even when answering that call means you have to face barriers.” And how, even in the face of opposition, “you have to do it anyway.” I had a chance to witness that opposition at IBMA late last month, during Chris Pandolfi’s thoughtful keynote address about the need for a bigger tent in bluegrass music. He rattled off the names of several bands who are on the cutting edge, trying to bring more fans to bluegrass while being bashed by the traditionalists. When he mentioned Missy’s band, someone blurted out, “No,” as if that was going too far. I was on the wrong side of the room to see who said it but multiple reports identify the same guy – a radio personality who has done much to lift bluegrass over the years. Turning away from Missy seems harsh and strange. She cut her teeth in bluegrass over the years. In addition to playing with the Claire Lynch Band, she recorded with some of the music’s legends over the decades, including Jesse McReynolds and Josh Graves. She has claimed IBMA’s bass player of the year statue seven times, making her the genre’s most-decorated female instrumentalist. Missy was in the room when that know-it-all sounded off but if she heard the comment she didn’t react. Later, she said she pays very close attention to the what-is-bluegrass debate “because I care about the community. I want unity in this community.” But in the next breath she said she and the band would go where the music takes them, and for now that’s in the direction they’ve already been heading. She is deep into what she calls “the sussing out” of material for the recording. “This is possibly the most extensive process I’ve undertaken,” she said. In addition to choosing songs that fit the concept, she’s keeping a journal of her thoughts about those songs, something she hasn’t tried before. “I’m learning things about myself through this process,” she added. Further down the road, Missy envisions a New Hip Christmas album and something sure to silence the critics, at least for a while – a traditional bluegrass record. She won’t do it for the critics, of course. She’ll do it because that’s where the musical journey will take her. But you can bet they’ll happily go along for the ride. |
| David Morris |
Missy Raines and the New Hip featured at Stringbreak Music Festival |
SPRING LAKE — For most of her long musical career, Missy Raines was comfortable in her supporting role as a bluegrass bass player. It didn't matter that the majority of the audience's attention was focused on other musicians on the stage. Being the backbone of the music was all that was important.
These days finds Raines, 48, at the helm of the New Hip, a quartet that has garnered a lot of attention for its thoughtful hybrid of bluegrass, pop, blues and early jazz. Raines, who cut her musical teeth on bluegrass and is familiar with the fickle nature of the music's audience, admits she was climbing out on a limb when she put together her band in 2008.
"I was looking to do something completely different …," said Raines, who performs Saturday and Sunday at the Stringbreak Music Festival at the Sertoma Youth Ranch. "That can be a risky thing if you're looking to build an audience. But somehow we've managed to do that, and it's been very satisfying to me."
Stylistically, the band takes a number of its cues from new acoustic folk pioneers such as David Grisman, Sam Bush and Tony Rice. However, Raines credits band members Ethan Ballinger (guitar, mandolin), Robert Crawford (drums) and Josh Philpot (guitar) for constantly expanding the band's musical boundaries.
"They're incredibly gifted players," Raines said. "We do a lot of improvising. Someone will start with a riff or groove, and we just take it where we feel it needs to go. That often makes for a lot of fun on stage."
Raines is no slouch herself as a musician. In fact, she's earned seven top honors for her bass playing from the International Bluegrass Music Association, plus numerous other awards. Since forming the band, she has also become noted for her singing.
"Singing solo was never a main focus for me before," she said. "The toughest thing is finding songs that I enjoy singing and that fit my voice."
Missy Raines and the New Hip will perform at 1:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday and at 3:45 p.m. Sunday. In addition, Raines will host an acoustic bass workshop at 4:45 p.m. Saturday.
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| Logan Neill, St. Petersburg Times |
She leads and she follows |
As a lifelong bluegrasser, Missy Raines knows how fussy fans can be when someone "tinkers" with Bill Monroe's iconic music. Yet as an artist, Raines knows to follow her muse.
Her muse led the award-winning bassist to establish Missy Raines and the New Hip, the exceptional acoustic combo that released its debut CD, "Inside Out," last year. While incorporating elements of bluegrass, the album ranges widely into jazz, pop and folk. The result is a creative blend of styles and sounds that is interesting, adventurous and bold.
"It was my goal to create and play music I was interested in and that I could collaborate on with other artists," says Raines, who will perform in Durham tonight at the Casbah. "Whatever that ended up being, I wanted to do as good as I could and hope that somebody liked it. We've found that the response has been pretty positive. And I feel like that's a great indication of where the music's heading.
"We're not a bluegrass band, and I never try to portray that we are. But I am so much from that world, that there is always going to be an influence and an element of it in my music."
Revered as one of the top instrumentalists in her field, Raines has been voted the International Bluegrass Music Association's top bass player a record seven years. She's performed with such notable artists as Eddie and Martha Adcock, and the Claire Lynch Band, and teamed with guitarist Jim Hurst for a head-turning duo before establishing the New Hip in 2008.
Read more |
| Jack Bernhardt-Raleigh News & Observer |
Upcoming concerts-Charlotte Creative Loafing |
MISSY RAINES & THE NEW HIP Bassist Missy Raines' affection for bluegrass and acoustic roots music is apparent with the opening notes of any of her songs. The top-notch musicians in her crew play off each other as well as weave in and out of the songs with such ease. Inlaid with jazz, newgrass, breezy vocals, even acoustic pop, the combo's newest recording, Inside Out, is a keeper. $12-$15. Double Door Inn. www.doubledoorinn.com. |
| Samir Shukla |
Calling all hipsters |
There are few sounds as compelling in the world as the thick, warm grooviness of a really nice double bass, and it’s a pity that those who play this demanding instrument are often hidden there in the back of the band in a support role. But fans of jazz especially know never to underestimate the bass player. After all, some of the finest composers and bandleaders of all time – like my boys Charles Mingus and Dave Holland – were/are bass players. And this week at Roots, we’ll be hearing from an extraordinary bass player who earned her reputation in bluegrass but who as a bandleader has exploded the genre barriers and offered us a striking new acoustic sound. Her name is Missy Raines, and if you follow the picking world, you may know she owned the IBMA bass player of the year award for a while, picking up seven trophies between 1998 and 2007. Since she started her career playing with greats like Eddie Adcock and Claire Lynch, she’s been interested in forming a nimble, improvisatory band, and now she has one called The New Hip. This is both a funny little riff on the famous album title Birth of the Cool that symbolized Miles Davis and the California-driven jazz trend of the 1950s, as well as a funny little riff on Missy’s own miraculous prosthetic that made it a hell of a lot easier for her to walk, play her stand-up instrument and insist to friends that she is part cyborg.
Missy says she consciously reached out to players a generation younger than she is for a few reasons. One is that they were less likely to be enmeshed in other working bands. The other is that they think and play more freely. So she and her young prodigies hit the studio and came up with one of the coolest albums of 2009, Inside Out on the Compass label. From the first gut-stirring (low) notes, it’s a fun, sophisticated and dynamically involving piece of work. And though it’s mostly an instrumental album that fuses grass, jazz and funk, Missy shows her skill at picking and singing songs with a few beautifully rendered songs from the underappreciated Ed Snodderly. Get a copy of this for yourself and then one for your Mom and Dad. Tell them to put it on for a Sunday morning and see if they don’t thank you.
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| Craig H |
MIssy Raines & the New Hip rests comfortably at the sweet spot where bluegrass and jazz meet..." |
| Country Weekly |
Concert review: Missy Raines, band shine at City Park |
The audience that filled City Park on Friday night experienced not only perfect weather, but delightful music by Missy Raines and the New Hip, enhanced by the best sound technology I've heard in that venue. |
| Susan Pena |
The Birmingham News-No bones about it: Missy Raines and the New Hip break bluegrass rules and love it |
To borrow a phrase from that sage Cyndi Lauper: She’s so unusual. Well, unusual for the bluegrass world.
Missy Raines, 48, is a bass player and the leader of an innovative acoustic troupe, Missy Raines and the New Hip. She’s been named bassist of the year seven times by the International Bluegrass Music Association.
In a music genre that’s traditionally reluctant to accept change, Raines stands out for her achievements and daring. She’s among a handful of women — including Claire Lynch, Alison Krauss and Alison Brown — who’ve challenged the standards, expanded the boundaries and exploded the stereotypes.
But during a recent phone interview, Raines doesn’t sound like a defiant maverick. She’s warm and reflective, amused and articulate.
"Do I feel like a trailblazer? No, but I do think people see it that way," Raines says. "I can’t say that I made any conscious decisions. This just happened to be the way I was going musically. I just wanted to do this, and no one ever told me I couldn’t."
Over the years, however, Raines has experienced her share of chair snappers — irate purists who fold up their seats and leave when acts stray from the bluegrass blueprint at concerts and festivals.
Such folks definitely make their presence known, she says, although a growing number of people believe there’s ample room for bluegrass, newgrass and an entire field of acoustic offshoots.
Raines, who leans to jazz, folk, pop and country, says she’s found kindred souls in listeners at The Acoustic Cafe. Regulars at the Alabama festival have embraced her music during previous visits, in Lynch’s band and in a duet with Jim Hurst.
The bassist will return to The Acoustic Cafe’s stage on Saturday, playing before headliner Sam Bush.
"What I love about that audience is that it’s very open-minded," Raines says. "There’s a wide range of music and people love it all. That’s my idea of a great day."
Do’s and don’ts continue to exist in bluegrass, she says, although fence-breakers like Raines pay them little heed. Example: She was determined to have drummer in the New Hip, along with bass, guitar, mandolin and Dobro.
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| Mary Colurso |
Village Voice's Pazz & Jop Critics' Poll |
Missy Raines and the New Hip's "Inside Out" was number four on David Royko's Best Albums for 2009. |
| David Royko |
The Spirit Behind the Bass Never Falters |
Something's brewing in the world of bluegrass when the IBMA Bass Player of the Year puts out an album with drums and electric guitar and brings that lineup to the Station Inn in Nashville for a sold-out debut show. We're talking about Missy Raines stirring the pot, turning things Inside Out with her new album of the same name. When Missy Raines and the New Hip opened their set, swapping leads on stringed instruments, the music seemed closer to European Gypsy than America's blended bluegrass. Her bass flowed beneath it all like an underground river. The audience was heated, then cooled by the careful selections and meticulous, impassioned playing. Raines, Dillon Hodges (guitar), and Ethan Ballinger (mandolin) played together, appearing to be dancing on a soul-lift elevator. Michael Witcher completes the New Hip with resonator guitar, lap steel, and vocals. Guests sat in: Matt Flinner and Roland White with their mandolins, Megan
McCormick on tremolo electric, and Robert Crawford on drums. The bass never faltered.
Co-producer (and husband) Ben Surratt said, "She pulls out the best tone in a bass that I've ever heard -- and the best from people, too."
Others agree: Raines was awarded Bass Player of the Year seven of the last 10 years by the International Bluegrass Association. "I'd been nominated so many times. But when I won it that first time [1998], it was an out-of-the-body experience. I remember what I didn't say -- I forgot to thank my husband!"
That's hard to imagine. Raines, who is characterized as "the nicest person you'd ever want to meet," looks like the sweet girl-next-door -- and acts like her, too. She's left music only once in her life, to help an ailing, terminally ill brother. "She worked at a cafeteria in food service so she could care for him," said Claire Lynch, " 'cause she's a real people person. She has fortitude, knows what she wants, and is not afraid to move ahead. But I've not seen her offend anyone. When she approaches another person, it's with kindness and acceptance." Lynch is a renowned bluegrass vocalist and bandleader, and Raines was her bass player from 1995-2000 and again from 2005-2008.
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| Deborah Wilbrink |
Wall Street Journal-The Sisterhood of Bluegrass |
As for Ms. Raines, "Inside Out," the highly rhythmic entry from the veteran bass player -- the first with her young, adept, rightfully confident band, The New Hip -- features some deft singer-songwriter vocal changeups, as well as musically witty instrumentals that cross over into what could just as well be labeled progressive jazz.
Ms. Raines grew up amid the adventurous sounds of Newgrass; she can be seen responding to that music as a child in the film "Bluegrass Country Soul," shot at a legendary 1971 North Carolina festival in which young Sam Bush and Larry Rice first introduced many to those sounds. Her own musical pull, she noted when we talked, would be toward "moments where something is happening, and the utter opposite, and somehow it meshes together" -- surprising sounds hard to define in a one-liner but very jazz-like in approach. She knew she would find a congenial home at Compass.
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| Barry Mazor |
Profile of Bluegrass Bassist Missy Raines |
On any given day, you could line up the customers and staff at Fido’s coffee shop, in the heart of Nashville’s Hillwood Village, hand them various stringed instruments, click on a stopwatch, and shout “Pick!” Because the clientele include many of the scene’s hottest and hungriest young musicians, you’d probably register more notes per second here than at any other venue in Music City. But without the drive provided by the woman seated near the rear of the dining area, all of that action would fly past like a cloud of mosquitoes in heat. That’s because Missy Raines harbors different priorities. True, she has chops to burn, but that’s not as important to her as finding the right note, dropping it in the pocket, and either letting it ring or clipping it short to let the silence speak in the aftermath. |
| Robert L. Doerschuk |
Country Weekly-Inside Out Review |
INSIDE OUT [3.5 stars] She’s been named the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Bass Player of the Year a record seven times, but Missy Raines never lets displays of instrumental virtuosity get in the way of a good song or a swinging groove on her first album with nimble new backing group The New Hip. Inside Out rests comfortably at the sweet spot where bluegrass and jazz meet, swinging lightly throughout most of its 10 tracks. The album is at its best when Missy and friends stretch out and explore the contours of a tune like the frisky instrumental “Stop, Drop & Wiggle.” |
| Chris Neal |
Bass Player Magazine-Missy Raines: Learning to Lead |
Has being a bandleader gotten easier for you?
It gets easier in that I know what’s coming, and I’m starting to get more confidence and learning to trust myself.
In terms of musical judgment?
Definitely the music part of it—trusting what I believe in and feeling good about putting it out there. But running a band is about so many things—personalities, business, building a brand. The good thing is I’ve surrounded myself with fabulous people.
Does being a bass player help you as a leader?
I think it brings a unique perspective because bass plays such a support role. There are other players who might consider bass as more of a lead instrument. I do leads, of course, but I’m coming at it as a team player.
As opposed to much of your work in bluegrass bands, you use drums on Inside Out.
Do you change your approach when you’re working with a drummer?
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| Richard Johnston |
With Basses Loaded, Raines Hits One Out of the Park |
Missy Raines jumped off the front porch without a safety net. Since then, she’s been soaring. Pop “Inside Out,” the new CD by Raines and the New Hip, into your player and get ready to hear jazz one minute, bluegrass the next and remarkable musicianship, ensemble and timing throughout. “If I could see it in my head — not to sound like a sound bite from a self-help seminar — if I could see it in the back of my mind, I could make it happen,” Raines said. “I feel incredibly fortunate to have players of this magnitude going out and being on this record and being committed to this project,” Raines said. “It’s a very collaborative effort.” “I have fond memories of everything about it,” Raines said of living in Charlottesville. “When my husband and I made the decision to move to Nashville, I hated it.” |
| Jane Norris |
CMT.com-Missy Raines Balances Bluegrass and Jazz on Acoustic Bass |
Missy Raines is well-known in bluegrass circles for her expressive plunking on the acoustic bass. Indeed, she’s been named bass player of the year seven times by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA), more often than anybody else. On Tuesday (Feb. 10), she finally released her first album as a bandleader, Inside Out, on Compass Records. The arrangements sometimes veer closer to jazz than bluegrass, but I can tell you this for sure - it’s all interesting. The high level of creativity can be credited to Raines’ wise decision to surround herself with young pickers like Michael Witcher on lap steel and resophonic guitar, Dillon Hodges on guitar and Ethan Ballinger on mandolin. She wrote the meandering title track with another young Nashville musician, Megan McCormick, who also sings and plays on a few tracks. You know how bluegrass folks talk about bridging the gap between generations? That’s what Raines is doing here, and it seems to me that she’s doing it very well. |
| Craig Shelburne |
Nashville Arts-Hip Replacement |
As residue of an earlier male-dominated era, women are still something of a minority in bluegrass, and virtuosic female bandleaders are even more rare. But they’re certainly out there, and banjo player Alison Brown is proof. Last year, Brown signed another—Missy Raines (an excellent, award-winning bassist in bluegrass and beyond) and Raines’ hot acoustic band the New Hip—to her label Compass Records for their debut full-length Inside Out. The title fits, since Raines, Michael Witcher, Dillon Hodges and Ethan Ballinger—plus Megan McCormick and other guests—take their bluegrass sensibilities and venture deep into playful jazz territory. As a general rule, it’s their vocal numbers that brood and their instrumentals—like the jaunty jazz boogie “Stop, Drop & Wiggle”—that percolate with energy. |
| Jewly Hight |
Bluegrass Journal-Missy Raines & The New Hip turn new CD “Inside Out” |
Missy Raines and The New Hip is the product of the renowned bluegrass bass player’s twenty-year long dream. The album, she stresses, is a true collaboration between her and her carefully constructed band, The New Hip: Ethan Ballinger, (mandolin/mandola), Michael Witcher (resonator guitar/lap steel/vocals), and Dillon Hodges (guitar/vocals). “I’ve wanted this for a very, very long time. This band and this sound has existed, at least in my head, for almost two decades - it was just a matter of finding musicians that could read my mind,” laughs Raines. |
| Travis Tackett |
Nashville Scene-EP Release Party |
Seven-time IBMA Bass Player of the Year, Raines isn’t resting on her bluegrass laurels. Instead, she’s brought together a startlingly gifted quintet that opts for groove over narrow stylistic consistency. The New Hip’s EP shows off the group’s range, from the melancholy, folk-leaning “Fingernail Moon” to the swinging funk of “Stop, Drop And Wiggle,” which cleaned up in ourstage.com’s JVC Newport Jazz Fest Channel song competition in May. Original guitarist Megan McCormick, who appears on the EP, recently departed the group, but phenom Dillon Hodges has made the transition seamless, and the band’s musical horizons continue to expand. Forget about categories-this is just good stuff, both deep and enormously enjoyable… |
| Jon Weisberger |
The Prog Files.com |
"With her incredible bass playing aside, Missy's steamy vocals are also unique for the genre. She has the voice of a jazz singer mixed with country and pop influences." |
Free Lance Star |
“Enter the New Hip, a group of talented young players who are at ease in almost any genre: bluegrass, jazz, swing, classical. There is nothing simple about the tunes on the band's new self-titled EP--but this is a group that finds comfort in complexity.” |
| Jonas Beals |
The Nashville Scene |
“Missy Raines has brought together a startlingly gifted quintet that opts for groove over narrow stylistic consistency. The New Hip’s EP shows off the group’s range, from the melancholy, folk-leaning…to the swinging funk…” |
| Jon Weisberger |
Bluegrass Breakdown |
| Dave Higgs |
Wall Street Journal |
"’Inside Out,’ the highly rhythmic entry from the veteran bass player [Missy Raines]-- the first with her young, adept, rightfully confident band, The New Hip -- features some deft singer-songwriter vocal changeups, as well as musically witty instrumentals that cross over into what could just as well be labeled progressive jazz.” |
CMT.com |
You know how bluegrass folks talk about bridging the gap between generations? That’s what Raines is doing here, and it seems to me that she’s doing it very well. |
Dirty Linen |
“When Missy Raines and the New Hip opened their set, swapping leads on stringed instruments…her bass flowed beneath it all like an underground river. The audience was heated, then cooled by the careful selections and meticulous, impassioned playing.”
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Strings Magazine |
“Missy Raines harbors different priorities. True, she has chops to burn, but that’s not as important to her as finding the right note [and] dropping it in the pocket." |
Nashville Scene |
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Free Lance Star |
“The band's set at the recent Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival in New York earned a standing ovation from a crowd that wasn't sure what to expect." |
City Scoops NY |
“Her music has a groovy, jazzy, lunch-on-the-patio vibe. Another real strength is Raines’ husky, soulful singing.” |
TheProgFiles.com |
Tony Rice said, "Playing with Missy is like walking on air", well, listening to Missy Raines and The New Hip feels the same way, truly uplifting.” |
Spaghetti Gazetti |
“This music is bloody lovely.” |
San Diego Troubadour |
“The New Hip is making some of the greatest music you will ever hear - very innovative and bursting with talent. Although grounded in bluegrass, the New Hip and its players move into a new sphere all their own." |
Date |
Venue |
Location |
| 02/24/2012 | Sioux City Community Theatre | Sioux City, IA |
| 02/26/2012 | CSPS | Cedar Rapids, IA |
| 06/01/2012 | Swallow Hill Music Hall | Denver, CO |
| 07/26/2012 | Ossipee Valley Music Festival | Cornish, ME |
| 08/09/2012 | Thursdays at the Lake-Kent Summer Concert Series | Kent, WA |
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