Leftover Salmon's Arch Deluxe
- Jun 15
- 10 min read
What better of a way to kick summer off than down in St. Louis with this star studded lineup at the Arch Deluxe Block Party hosted at Atomic by JAMO. Leftover Salmon is no slouch when it comes to throwing a good party. Less than two weeks had passed since their own High Country Kauai festival, before coming back to the mainland to throw down in the Gateway to the West. I can’t lie, I was personally only able to make it on Saturday, but Friday sure looked like a hoot! By the talks amongst the crowd on day 2, and the sound boards on Nugs, we missed out on a good party. Mountain Grass Unit played an opening set full of originals with “China Cat Sunflower” & “15 Steps” covers thrown in at the end. Salmon didn’t hold back, with an eclectic setlist which included standouts “New Country Blues” and “American Idiot”. Josiah Nelson (fiddle), Luke Black (guitar), & Silas Herman (mandolin) joined their forefathers on stage for "The Hobo Song”, “High Country”, & “Get No Better”.
This was my first time visiting this particular venue but all morning leading up to the show, everywhere we visited we were told nothing but great things about it. Upon arrival the vibes were high, walking into a closed off city street lined with Merchandise & Vendors. The smell of smoke rolling off of the grills and the sounds of bags bouncing off of corn hole boards let us know we were in the right place and that summer is here. Atomic by JAMO operates as one of the area's premier venues for live music hosting multiple different stages and areas to enjoy yourself. For this event they made use of all three stages simultaneously, operating the main stage out back in the lot and the two smaller indoor stages were used in between sets and for the late night performances. This setup was ideal, it allowed attendees to maximize their time, giving a chance to easily float back and forth between stages. That is until the sun went down and Mountain Grass Unit took the stage, at that point a majority of the entire outdoor lot was full of bluegrass lovers dancing shoulder to shoulder.
The first set of the day was Falling Fences, what I would consider a southern folk band with a calm Irish bluesy sound. “Bands that have grown up together have a really good dynamic, no ego involved,” says Sean Canan, lead guitarist and chief arranger for the St. Louis based-band. Four of the five band members met back in 1999 at University of Missouri Columbia and have been making music together ever since. Under the name Joe Stickley’s Blue Print, the band released three albums and toured widely in the U.S. before slowing things down about ten years ago. The band has released a second project recently titled Falling Fences II, be sure to check them out wherever you listen to music. This local act was a great way to start the second day of the festival, and played over an hour of unique originals and covers, which you can see here on their hand written setlist.
Another local act; ClusterPluck followed, picking up the pace a little bit with their sound which was a blend of bluegrass and rock with the ability to really jam. A prime example of time together creating a good dynamic. Started in 2010 the group has always remained a core three with Britton Liefer on drums as the newest addition in 2021. On this day one of the members couldn't make it out so they had an old friend who used to play with them join in on fiddle. Even with the circumstances, the vibes on stage were high amongst the group and you could hear it in their music. I personally always enjoy when a band feels comfortable on stage and is able to move around and back each other up properly. Towards the end of their set they played the classic “Me & My Uncle” which is a song I have heard live quite a few times live this year, and rightfully so, RIP Bob Weir. This iconic song was written by John Phillips of The Mamas & The Papas in 1963, during a hotel drinking session with Judy Collins, Stephen Stills, & Neil Young. Legend has it, Phillips was so drunk that he didn’t even remember writing the song until he started receiving royalty checks for the writers credits after Judy Collins recorded it in 1964. The song was later popularized by the Grateful Dead, being known as one of their most played covers with 616 performances noted in Dead Base. So much that most listeners think that Bobby actually wrote the song the way he tells the story so well. This quartet did it great justice, with the distortion on the fiddle really standing out in this jam.
Next, one of the acts that we really came to see, in case you haven’t figured it out, the hype is real. Here at Bluegrass Roadshow we have a special place in our hearts for these talented young men of Mountain Grass Unit. It seems the boys are truly finding their footing and creating a real fan base. Each show, the crowds grow and get louder, chanting all of their requests. Writing this I've noticed a theme amongst every band we saw this day, and that is the core of the groups being together since the beginning. Although still young, having just graduated college a year ago, three of the four grew up together playing music since they were kids. With the addition of Josiah Nelson less than two years ago, after he was supposed to only join them for a short run of shows. After which they asked him to join the band full time. Josiah can be heard loud and clear sawing on the fiddle here on Bob Dylan’s 1978 Señor.
The whole band wreaks of talent and hard work every time they step on stage. Mandolinist Drury Anderson & Guitarist Luke Black recently graduated last spring from Berklee College of Music and their studies do not go unnoticed. Luke has been making a big splash this past year in the bluegrass scene with his tight flatpicking skills. For three years the young guitarist worked with Lessons With Marcel as a Music Transcriptionist, tabbing and writing music to many different song requests. Doing these fundamental tasks like transcribing music from ear, gives the musician an advantage to have on stage with them. Luke has since moved on to giving his own private lessons now, adding paid videos to his Patreon as well as posting short instructionals to his Instagram, @lessons_with_luke. During the show, Drury mentioned that the boys have been in the studio working on a new album which has been forcing them to play all of their old favorites before all this new music debuts. The unit decided to play all three songs off of their first ever EP titled Where I Land, which gave Luke the opportunity to get into a juicy jam we see here on the track “ Bowlin’ Ball”.
On April 29th country music lost a real legend, one of the last true outlaws left, David Allan Coe. Love him or hate him, the man's whole life was a controversy, but nobody can deny that he was one hell of an artist who left a mark on music that will be remembered forever. Being from Birmingham, Alabama I'm sure the boys grew up hearing a little Coe in their local speakers, but I didn't expect such an epic cover of “You Never Even Called Me By My Name”. Don’t you love it when you go to a show and the band plays an unexpected tune that you've been listening to recently or maybe even hoping to hear? I was born in rural Kentucky, so to say I grew up an outlaw country fan is an understatement. I had a neighbor growing up, Steve Brown, who used to burn CDs and had given me a David Allan Coe Greatest Hits before I could even drive. To this day that CD remains in my 6 disc radio of my old pickup truck, having been played more times than any one thing in my life. As mentioned in the track, “Well a friend of mine named Steve Goodman wrote that song” but the famous title and chorus line was written by John Prine during a late night session with Goodman in 1971. A generational hit that I hope will never be forgotten, “The Perfect Country & Western Song”.
You can tell that all of the Mountain Grass boys are real appreciators of music with their choices of covers. That's the beauty of catching one of their shows, you truly never know what is going to be thrown into the mix from obscure Dawg tunes, to bluegrass Bob Marley. Listening to their interview with Chris Pandolfi on Inside The Musicians Brain I discovered a bit more where their inspiration comes from and what they enjoy listening to offstage. That being said I think we can blame Sam (bassist) for the bluegrass Bob Marley! That night they played a set packed full of originals and bluegrass standards like John Hardy, Big Spike Hammer, & Slow Train. But also chose their covers wisely with Don Williams “Tulsa Time” and Gregg Allman's “Midnight Rider”.
I was lucky enough to be able to snag a photo of a setlist that was passed into the crowd, and like any good show there's always a couple that get missed hopefully due to a juicy jam that wasn’t planned.
Now for the main event, the moment we've all been waiting for if you will. All day long Alwyn Robinson's drum set alone and empty on stage behind the opening acts just waiting patiently to be beat on and the time had finally come. Leftover Salmon has always been a force to be reckoned with coming out of Colorado in the early 90s with a different approach than some others at the time. Bluegrass music at its core is about roots and tradition and some of these songs we know and love today wouldn’t be a thing if their predecessors weren’t passed down and remembered. One thing Bluegrass does well is covering songs from other genres and making them staples in the scene for years to come. “Lumpy, Beanpole, and Dirt” was released by Bad Livers on their 1998 album, Industry and Thrift. The Bad Livers music defied attempts to categorize them as a preexisting genre but to me they were an eclectic punk folk group with a gritty Texas feeling. The way Salmon played this song, reminded me of the Great American Taxi version which is the one I grew up on.
Speaking of Great American Taxi, Vince Herman, the king of side groups, took a moment to invite his fellow guitarist from The High Hawks, Adam Gruel on stage to perform their own Backwater Voodoo. The song was written by Gruel and released on the supergroups second album Mother Nature’s Show. If you haven't checked out The High Hawks be sure to do so, although there are currently no upcoming shows announced, keep your eyes peeled.
Both nights of the Arch Deluxe, Vince invited members of Mountain Grass Unit on stage to help cap things off. On Saturday they played the old classic Bluegrass goodbye, “Y'all Come!” Leftover Salmon came out in a time of transition for the scene, the early 90s gave way to a more progressive sound, the Colorado sound if you will. Shortly after came The String Cheese Incident, then later Yonder Mountain String Band. Each creating their own unique sound while keeping tradition alive and paving the way for what we know as progressive Bluegrass music today. Fast forward we have MGU, one of the hottest young acts in the scene co-headlining a festival and sharing a stage with the 35+ year old band. Pay attention to the way Vince looks at Luke Black in awe as he takes his solo about half way through. I keep hearing it time and time again this year, but it’s safe to say Bluegrass is in darn good hands.
About halfway through that ClusterPluck set, the crowd really started to fill in and the room to move became less and less so we stayed planted on the rail for the most part. We did get some time earlier in the day to step back and play some corn hole, or bags depending on where you're from and what you call it. That being said, the walk back from the bathroom to the front of house was almost two songs long. It always puts a great big ole smile on my face every time I see a crowd gather like this for Bluegrass Music.
Before Leftover Salmon even had the chance to end we were already rushing into the Garage to see Horseshoes & Hand Grenades who we had the pleasure of seeing the night before in Peoria, IL which was a very memorable show. We managed to land ourselves in the front left corner of the room which happened to be where the artists came in and out of. Got the chance to enjoy the first couple of songs with none other than Vince Herman himself before he took the stage with the boys. The Wisconsin based band is lead by Adam Gruel who is a long time friend of Vince’s and a midwest legend.
To say these guys know how to throw a party is an understatement. All of the band members met back in their college days at the University of Wisconsin 16 years ago, cutting their teeth in house parties and local taverns. In a 2025 interview, Adam says the band focuses on having a good time with music. “We are more of a conduit to having fun – we don’t feel it’s necessary to be so serious all the time.” Every Gruel show I've ever attended, no matter the group that's with him, is spectacular and truly has gotten better throughout the years. This epic cover of Pink Floyd’s “Time” was wedged right in the middle of an original jam and fit the bill so well. The way Davey’s harmonica blended with Collin’s fiddle was effortless, almost like the song was written to one day be played this way.
The Arch Deluxe Block Party was nothing short of a great time and the perfect way to kick off the summer. Hats off to the cats over at the Atomic for pulling off such an awesome and unique event. To have this amount of talent on one bill for an independent venue is no easy feat, so we thank them immensely for doing it and hope we can all come back next year. Now more than ever it is very important to support your local musicians as well as your local venues. They can't survive without our support, and a world with no good music is no world I want to be in.
As always, if you've made it this far, thank you for reading the Bluegrass Roadshow.
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