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Their musical influences come from a range of sources, founding member Tink Lloyd acknowledges, but the Slambovian Circus of Dreams’ widely praised songwriting and powerful musicianship stand on their own.
Band members and critics have cited influences such as Dylan, Bowie, late ‘60s English folk-rock – from the Incredible String Band to Fairport Convention – Pink Floyd’s Syd Barrett, and British-Irish folk-rock band The Waterboys. Yet the Slambovians have won contemporary critical praise for their musicianship and songwriting everywhere from the New York Times to industry publications in the US and England.
And now, you can see and hear what it’s all about right here in Plymouth. The Slambovian Circus of Dreams will perform their rock magic at The Spire Center for Performing Arts, 25 1/2 Court St. on Friday, Feb. 23, at 8 p.m.
The band was formed in the woods of Sleepy Hollow, New York, in the late 1990s.
“We had just started to explore alternatives to the New York City club scene, where we had performed previously,” Lloyd said. “There was a real energy happening in the Hudson Valley, and all throughout New England at the time. There were cool under-the-radar coffeehouses and a community of great local artists to connect with.” The group began to play at open mic sessions and quickly built a following.
Lloyd attributes the band’s name to early studio sessions. “When we would do things that were beyond our capabilities, we began to say, ‘That is Slambovian.’ There was something hard to describe, but metaphysical going on.”
She compares the feeling to what athletes call being “in the zone.”
“That happens at our shows with audiences if we’re doing our job right,” Lloyd said.
In addition to Lloyd (on accordion, cello, mandolin, and flute), the band consists of Joziah Longo, described as “resident shaman” and lead vocalist, guitarist and mandolin wizard Sharkey McEwen, and “friends” RJ McCarty (keys, bass, sax), Bob Torsello (bass), and Matthew Abourezk (drums).
Lloyd said Longo discovered his own “school of rock” playing with his father in their basement in Philadelphia. Neighbors came by and joined in a mix of “classic country, vintage pop songs as well as the latest Beatles and British Invasion. Joziah became a serious student of Bob Dylan” at a young age, Lloyd said. She also cited a “natural element of ‘60s psychedelia and folk mixed in with the country roots of the band.”
Other influences, she said, include “the inventiveness of British Folk,” from bands such as The Incredible String Band – known for their idiosyncratic approach to folk music in originals such as “A Very Cellular Song” and “The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter” – and Fairport Convention, which put a searing rock beat in their recording of the traditional ballad “Matty Grove.”
Another roots music influence comes with guitarist McEwen, who traces the Southern rock DNA in his playing to a childhood in which “the Allman Brothers were on repeat a lot,” Lloyd said. “So the country-southern rock ingredients are always bubbling somewhere under the surface of our music, along with the British rock and American folk influences.”
Music critics in both the US and the UK have raved about the band’s songwriting and performances. Maverick Country Music Magazine, a British publication, wrote that everything about the band’s work “screams quality – commercial rock from the cool end of Americana.”
Lloyd said the publication’s description “really fits us,” citing the extra theatrical elements” in the band’s shows and recordings. “Our music is not just about notes, it’s about the whole movie we’re in when we present a song to our audiences,” she said.
Tickets for the show range from $25.20 to $28 and are available here.
More things to do this week and beyond
Monday, Feb. 19
It’s Presidents Day. Put your feet up and read a biography of Abe Lincoln or FDR, the only two American presidents who are almost universally admired. Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin wrote “Team of Rivals” about Lincoln’s genius in appointing political rivals to high posts in his administration. She also wrote about Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt’s political partnership in “No Ordinary Time.” Or maybe you developed a childhood crush on JFK Or Obama – there’s plenty to about – and by – them, too.
Tuesday, Feb. 20
Pilgrim Hall Museum invites the public to “February Kids Week,” featuring family-friendly activities and free admission,with something different each day, Tuesday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. That includes child-centered tours of museum collections and storytime readings from children’s literature. A new coloring book about the Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe illustrated by artist and tribal member Quincy Harding will be on display Tuesday.
The Plymouth Public Library hosts an online author’s talk with New York Times bestselling author Jason Mot, author of the recent novel “Hell of a Book,” in which a Black author sets out on a cross-country publicity tour to promote his bestselling novel. Mott’s novel also tells the story of Soot, a young Black boy living in a rural town in the recent past, and “The Kid,” a possibly imaginary child who appears to the author on his tour. The talk takes place from 4 to 5 p.m. To register, go here.
Wednesday, Feb. 21
Pilgrim Hall Museum hosts storyteller Jackson Gillman at 11 a.m. He will present what the museum calls a “rollicking ride into his wildly imaginative worlds of creative adventure.” Gillman’s storytelling aims at “bringing the wonders of wintertime alive” for audiences of all ages, it says.
The Artisan Pig, at 66 Court St., hosts the Plymouth Area Chamber of Commerce’s monthly networking luncheon from noon to 1:30 p.m. Nonmembers can register here.
Thursday, Feb. 22
The Plymouth Library hosts local singer-songwriter Mamasteph for traditional songs, stories, and a sing-along, from 11 a.m. to noon in the Fehlow meeting room. Registration is required to reserve a space. Register here.
The school vacation week public program at Pilgrim Hall Museum presents Charlotte Anne Dore and “Rosalita’s Puppet Show” at 11 a.m. The character of Aunty Goose, described as “Mother Goose’s story-telling sister,” offers a fun show with handmade puppets.
The Plymouth Center for the Arts, 11 North St., invites the public to the opening reception for its new show, “Abstractions,” from 6 to 8 p.m. Admission is free, but donations are welcome.
Friday, Feb. 23
Pilgrim Hall Museum concludes its public program week with a rhythm drum circle at 11 a.m. featuring Ed Sorrentino, percussion department chair of the South Shore Conservatory. He’ll demonstrate keeping the beat with an array of West African drums. Visitors will be invited to join the drumming circle and experience the pleasure of making music “with drums from many lands.” At 1 p.m., storyteller and musician John Porcino will mix stories and songs from around the world.
Plymouth library hosts a program on hibernation, migration, and the amazing adaptations animals have for surviving our harshest temperatures for children for ages 5 and up. The program takes place from 2 to 3 p.m. Registration is required. You can do so here.
Saturday, Feb. 24
The South of Boston Board Game Group will hold a meet-up at Plymouth library’s craft room, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., for all ages and skill levels. Playing “modern strategic board games” such as Euro, Cooperative, Social Deduction, Area Control, Filler, Roll and Write, it’s unlikely anyone will be bored at the board game meet-up.
Sunday, Feb. 25
The 1620 Winery at 55 Cordage Park Circle hosts it eighth Bridal Expo from noon to 3 p.m. Engaged couples, along with friends and family, are invited to see the rustic winery venue, meet local vendors, dance to the live DJ, and enjoy hors d’oeuvres prepared by the winery’s executive chef. There will be a cash bar. Admission is free, but pre-registration is required. You can do so here.
La Vie Luna Apothecary, 65 Main St., holds a brunch-time candle making workshop from 1 to 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $65 and are available here.
Monday, Feb. 26
The Plymouth Library’s “Noteworthy Nonfiction Book Club” meets from 6 to 7 p.m. The group is reading “The White Darkness” by David Grann. Copies are available to check out at the circulation desk. Call Kris Boyles at 508-830-4250 ext. 201, for more information.
Registration for classes at Plymouth Center for the Arts is open. The center offers classes for adults, children and teens in artisan crafts, dance, digital art, drawing, oil and acrylics, pastels, photography, pottery/ceramics, and watercolor. For more information go here.
Tuesday, Feb. 27
In connection with the Plymouth Library’s One Book, One Community group, Nature’s Best Hope, the public is invited to a screening of “Green Fire,” courtesy of the Aldo Leopold Foundation. The first full-length documentary film ever made about legendary conservation thinker Aldo Leopold, “Green Fire” explores Leopold’s extraordinary career. The film traces how he shaped the modern conservation movement and continues to inspire projects all over the country that connect people and the land. The screening will take place in the library’s Fehlow meeting room, from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 28
ThreeV Restaurant, 10 Cordage Park Circle, offers “Terrarium and Taps” from 6 to 8 p.m. Participants will learn the techniques to create a tiny world of plants, rocks, and moss, encapsulated in a glass terrarium. Each participant will make a terrarium to take home. The session includes all materials.Tickets are $42.22 and are available to purchase here.
The Plymouth Library hosts a virtual author talk with Kim Scott, New York Timesbestselling author of “Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity,”from 2 to 3 p.m. More information is here.
Thursday, Feb. 29
Preschool Story time, a half-hour story program that gives parents, caregivers, and children ages 3-5 the opportunity to enjoy books, songs, rhymes, and movement activities together, takes place from 11 to 11:30 in the Plymouth Library meeting room. The activity also reinforces important early literacy skills to help children get ready to read. Other children are welcome as well. No registration necessary.
America’s Hometown Laureate committee presents “Meet the Finalists” at Plimoth Patuxet Museums, 137 Warren Ave. Two finalists for the position of the town’s poet laureate, Bill Arienti and Miriam O’Neal, will present an original work about Plymouth. The event begins with a cocktail hour at 5 p.m. in the museums’ Gainsborough Hall (including hors d’oeuvres and cash bar), followed by the presentations at 6 p.m. The event will also include a farewell ceremony for Plymouth’s first poet laureate, Stephan Delbos.
Friday, March 1
Every month, the Plymouth Library’s :Wild About Reading: Sustainable Storytime” presents stories and activities that teach children about environmentalism and encourage a lifelong love of nature and the outdoors. The program runs from 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Storytime books are chosen for ages 5-9. Registration is required.
Saturday, March 2
Pilgrim Hall director Donna Curtin leads a Burial Hill tour on the topic of “A Blessing Great but Dangerous: Children in Early Plymouth,” beginning at 1 p.m. Meet at the top of the hill in the town’s oldest cemetery, accessible by stairs from Town Square. Tours last one hour. They’re free. No registration required.
Sunday, March 3
“Master Illusionist” Lyn Dillies, described as America’s premier female illusionist, brings her magic to The Spire, 25 ½ Court St., from 2 to 4 p.m. Tickets are $22.50-$25 and are available here.