PUTNEY — Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present roots, old time, and Americana quintet The Mammals (featuring Mike & Ruthy), plus folk-rock singer/songwriter Brian Dunne, at Next Stage on Saturday, Oct. 28, at 7:30 p.m.
Woodstock, N.Y.-based Ruth Ungar and Mike Merenda founded The Mammals with Tao Rodriguez-Seeger (grandson of the legendary folk singer Pete Seeger) in 2000, and after touring the world for seven years with the likes of Arlo Guthrie and Pete Seeger, emerged as “one of acoustic America's most revered musical duos - Mike & Ruthy,” according to a news release.
The daughter of fiddle legend Jay Ungar and country singer Lyn Hardy, Ungar is an earthy country-blues singer with “the unmistakable stage presence of a natural-born performer.” Merenda is a prolific songwriter with “an indie-rock soul and feather-touch vocals.”
This year, Ungar and Merenda have brought back the original band name that energized crowds in the 2000s and gave them their start. This time around, they say, The Mammals' goals remain two-fold: raise positive social awareness and have a good party.
With former Mammal members including Jacob Silver and Ken Maiuri, the 2017 lineup features the signature mix of Americana hoedowns, sassy blues, Motown soul, old-timey harmonies, rock-n-roll energy and inspired, political songwriting.
New York City-based, folk-rock singer/songwriter and guitarist Brian Dunne is quickly gaining attention and praise across the U.S. for his sharp lyrical prowess and country-influenced vocals.
His second album, “Bug Fixes & Performance Improvements,” was released in May 2017, debuting at No. 10 on the iTunes Songwriter charts and earning Dunne performances on NPR's Mountain Stage, 2017's Cayamo Cruise, and the Philadelphia Folk Festival.