The Ragbirds - Travelin' Machine (2011)

The Ragbirds are a progressive folk five-piece based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Led by multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and vocalist Erin Zindle, diverse influences ranging from Eastern European, Irish, and American folk to reggae, rock, and blues peer through her compositions alongside more expected elements of pop, country, and bluegrass. The group uses varied traditional folk instruments including fiddle, banjo, accordion, and African and Middle Eastern percussion, in additional to electric bass and guitar. They released their debut album, Yes Nearby, in 2005; it was compiled mostly by Zindle and drummer Randall Moore before the Ragbirds became a touring quintet with shifting membership. Zindle and Moore married in 2006, then issued the LPs Wanderlove and Finally Almost Ready in 2008 and 2009. The band toured extensively in the meantime, including appearances at Michigan's Rothbury Music Festival and New York's CMJ Music Festival. Travelin' Machine arrived in 2012 and was followed a year later by the live album We Belong to the Love. In early 2015, the band returned to the studio with producer Jamie Candiloro (Ryan Adams, Ed Kowalczyk) for their fifth studio album, Threshold & the Hearth, released in 2016 by Rock Ridge Music. ~ Marcy Donelson