Winners of the 2018 Telluride Bluegrass Band Competition, something downright mystical is happening on Colorado’s Front Range. The very roots of traditional acoustic music seem to sprout from the dirt, shaking their dust into the winds of change, to be breathed in and become the soul of musicians who craft their songs here.

Such is the music of Wood Belly, a musical collective of Chris Weist (mandolin), Tom Knowlton (guitar), Chris Zink (dobro), Aaron McCloskey (banjo) and Taylor Shuck (bass). A Wood Belly song has its own lyrical persona and masterful arrangement; rooted in bluegrass tradition and planted solidly in contemporary innovation.