I had a chance to speak with Chris Pandolfi of The Infamous Stringdusters today, and he caught me up on a couple of projects he is working on going into the Fall. The band is heading into the studio next week, and Chris has a brand new banjo he’s planning to use when they start recording.

He is really excited about the banjo, a soon-to-be-released Chris Pandolfi signature model Huber. It will differ from the rest of the Huber line in that it employs a mahogany rather than a maple rim. The fingerboard is also fairly stark by modern standards, using dot inlays with a winged emblem at the 5th fret and Chris’ signature at the 21st fret.

Chris worked with Steve Huber to design the banjo, and is delighted with the result.

“I’ve been playing it around the clock for the past couple weeks and it’s really sounding great. It’s been a long process, and Steve has been really gracious with his time to make sure we get this right.

It has a very big dynamic range, which I think comes from the mahogany rim, allowing for a wider range of tone and dynamics – especially away from the bridge.

My goal all along with this banjo was to find something that suits my playing – a more modern as opposed to traditional approach. I still love to play grass, and I prefer a typical bluegrass set up, which I find more responsive.

You can set this banjo up with lighter strings and lower action, and the rim (to my ear) serves to mellow out the tone with a normal bluegrassy set up. But it doesn’t sacrifice anything when it comes to bluegrass playing.

Noam Pikelny (of Punch Brothers) came by the other day with his old pre war, and we got all the banjos out for some side-by-sides. He had his flathead and I had my two Hubers – the new one and my Lancaster – plus my Robin Smith banjo. Especially comparing the two Hubers, you could hear the difference that comes from the mahogany rim.

Noam really dug the new Huber too.”

Chris and the rest of the ‘Dusters will be packing it up and heading to Charlottesville, VA next week to record their next album for Sugar Hill Records. They will be recording at Haunted Hollow, the private studio of the Dave Matthews Band.

“Our manager works with their management on some things, and he hooked us up with this place. The Dave Matthews Band built it with the label advance for one of their projects a few years ago, and it is awesome. (more…)

Here are three chances to catch some live bluegrass – and a live interview – via online radio Saturday (8/15).

Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper will be featured in a special Saturday afternoon edition of Blue Plate Special on WDVX. This is a live performance program which typically airs Monday-Friday at noon from either the WDVX studio or the Square Room in Knoxville. This show, however, is a live remote from The Olde Mill Square in Pigeon Forge, TN.

Van Eaton & Friends will also appear, starting at noon. You can catch WDVX over the air at 102.9 FM in and around Knoxville, and online at wdvx.com.

WBRF in Galax, VA will have an interview with Lou Reid & Carolina during the 8:00 p.m. hour of their Blue Ridge Backroads show. Host Judith Burnette will have Lou and the band on hand to discuss their new CD, My Own Set Of Rules.

The station broadcasts at 98.1 in Galax and online at blueridgecountry98.com.

The Grand Ole Opry also has a number of bluegrass acts on the bill for Saturday night. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band will be on the show, along with The Infamous Stringdusters and Jesse McReynolds & The Virginia Boys.

Look for The Dirt band to highlight material from their upcoming CD, Speed Of Life.

The Saturday Opry runs from 8:00-10:00 p.m., broadcast on WSM AM 650 from Nashville, and online at wsmonline.com.

All times indicated are EDT.

Chris Pandolfi has now posted the third installment in his video travelogue of The Infamous Stringdusters’ summer tour of the western US.

This time out, we find the guys at the Northwest String Summit in North Plains, OR. See our heroes prepare for the fest with a Quickie Mart stop, creating an improvised set list, and covering Jerry Reed’s marvelous song, The Likes Of Me – also famously recorded by Tony Rice.

Chris Pandolfi has sent along the second video installment in his Infamous Stringdusters travelogue, chronicling the band’s ongoing tour of the western US.

It’s a fun look at the way the guys interact with each other off stage, and shows some of their day off adventures in Colorado.

See the first installment here.