6 PM: Opening act Milton Busker has been a fixture of the Burlington music scene for over 20 years. After winning the 2002 Advance Music Acoustic Guitar Summit, he self-released the EP Dance Songs, Vol II and then laid low for about 10 years to focus on his new family. In 2012 he re-released the EP digitally with two additional tracks as “Dance Songs, Vol II+,” which Seven Days called “one of the finest local singer-songwriter releases in recent memory.”
Milton Busker & The Grim Work formed in 2014 after Milton ran into his old friend and fellow guitarist David Ball at a local farmer’s market–quite possibly the most Vermont band origin story ever. Joined by mandolin player Jom Hammack, bassist John Treybal, and drummer Dave Simpson, the group developed its sound through performances around Burlington before releasing a self-titled debut album recorded with Ryan Cohen at Robot Dog Studios. Their second full-length album, Made of Stars, was recorded at Lane Gibson Studio in Charlotte, Vermont, under the guidance of Jeremy Mendicino and mastered by Ryan Cohen of Robot Dog Studio. In addition to many shows in the Chittenden County area, Milton Busker & The Grim Work recently opened up for folk legend Dar Williams and southern up-and-comers The Brook & The Bluff.
The band plays a type of Americana/Alt-Country they call "suit-folk", defined as the people’s music, all dolled up for a night on the town. It is an Appalachian ditty played by Cole Porter. It’s a gospel song for heretics. It’s hippie music for people that can’t afford to drop out. It’s a love song for the kid who couldn’t get a date but still dresses up for the dance.
7:30 PM: Gritty and raw folk-rock outfit The Wolff Sisters first broke into the Boston music scene as an acoustic trio. Headliners with haunting harmonies and songs reminiscent of washed-up wanderers on New England’s salty coasts, sisters Rebecca, Rachael, and Kat stole Boston’s heart. Raised by a poet and a musician, they grew up on the realism of Dylan and Springsteen blended with the loose and loud sounds of the Rolling Stones. Drawing inspiration from blues giants like Howlin’ Wolf and modern storytellers Dawes, The Wolff Sisters don’t fit into one genre of music. With Rebecca on acoustic guitar, Rachael on electric guitar, Kat on keys, and all three on vocals, the sisters have spent years honing their sound together in an old Victorian house just outside Boston. In 2015, they expanded into a full band with rotating drummers and bassists, bringing a loose blues, roots, and rock ’n’ roll energy to stages across the region.
Lounge on the lawn as the sun dips low and enjoy live music with luminaries from all corners of the Vermont music scene. Twilight Concerts light up the park once (or twice) a month.
Summer in the City is made possible in part thanks to Underwriters at the Pomerleau Family Foundation; Supporters Burlington Telecom, Myti, and Lake Champlain Chocolates, and Community Partner American Flatbread Burlington Hearth
Media Sponsors: Seven Days and WCAX