There is an interesting interview with Punch Brothers on the Paste Magazine web site. It features the guys sitting down with Paste’s College Music Journal correspondent to talk about the instruments they use.

If you are interested in old instruments and the stories behind them, you’ll want to give this a look.

A lot of folks enjoyed Casey Driessen’s 5-string fiddle hunt video, where he and Luke Bulla traveled to Scottsburg, IN to the shop of John Silakowski. John built Casey’s existing fiddle, and the trip was made so that he could select a new one.

The first video featured Casey trying out instruments, trying to make his choice. In this second part, we see the winner (America’s Next Top Fiddle!), and enjoy a brief interview with Silakowski.

Casey Driessen is not only a fiery fiddler, a fearless improviser and a very talented musician overall. He is also a skilled photographer, with a great eye for a good shot.

Casey was tapped to play fiddle on Béla Fleck’s Throw Down Your Heart tour earlier this year, along with a number of the African musicians who were featured in the film and CD of the same name.

While on the road with the show, Casey captured a great many images with his camera, with the best of them displayed on his web site.

Casey agreed to let us show a few of the photos here, but a trip to his site will let you see them all.

We just heard from Zack Bevill with The Farewell Drifters, who had a number of tidbits to share with our readers.

First off, he mentioned that their next CD is finished, and is being mastered next week. Zack wasn’t sure whether they would be releasing it with a label, or on their own, but does expect to see it hit in February of 2010.

He was also psyched about the band recently being featured on the NPR wordplay program, Says You!, taped August 22 in the Polk Theatre at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center in downtown Nashville. They performed incidental music used during the show.

“It is a hilarious show, and we had a blast providing the music. We recorded two episodes, one of which has already aired (available for download purchase), and we expect the next one to air this weekend.”

Says You! airs at different times on their many radio affiliates, and you can check when it airs in your market online.

Zack also wanted to introduce their latest member…

“Christian Sedelmyer joined us on fiddle back in July. He replaced our former banjo player, Trevor Brandt. The transition was very smooth, and the fiddle really adds a new energy to our music.

He started playing violin when he was five years old using the Suzuki method, and he has a fantastic ear and understanding of music.  Christian’s background and approach to music is similar to ours, so he fit right in from day one. He is also a very able harmony singer, which is a big part of being a Drifter.  We are so glad to have him in the band.”

You can keep an eye on The Farewell Drifters’ tour schedule on their web site.