There is something inherent in our love of Southern music. Maybe its the nostalgic simplicity of the lifestyle the songs detail, or maybe its the natural rhythms, or it may just boil down to the fact that it can just be plain fun. To understand this, rope it in and control it is something that all those who play Southern music attempt to do. Dread Clampitt founder and front man Balder Saunders understands this. And his work with Dread Clampitt is his way of attempting to recreate roots music with crossover appeal.

For a band that plays Auburn as much as Dread Clampitt has, not enough has been said. Bridging the gap between popular mainstream tunes and classic bluegrass in a mixture the group labels as “bluegrass fusion,” Dread Clampitt put on one hell of a show every time they cruise through town.

As a group of multi-instrumentalists with a love of roots music and a knack for upbeat songwriting, Dread Clampitt excel as entertainers. Everyone in the band has put in their time in other regional groups and all bring a unique gift to the band. They are also tireless professional road musicians who can be found on the road many nights out of the month touring the Southeast leaving satisfied fans in their wake.

On May 26, the guys released their newest album, “Learning to Live,” an upbeat album full of blistering fiddle and mandolin work with special guest, fiddler Sam Bush.

Check out dreadclampitt.com for more details and tunes from their new album. Dread Clampit will be playing The Duck on Friday, June 4th.