Why so Serious?

Photo | facebook.com/Serious-Sam-BarrettYaDig-Records-185802254796469

Band: Serious Sam Barrett & James the Fang
Date: Sunday, Jan. 23 at 7 p.m.
Venue: Callaghan’s Irish Social Club, 916 Charleston St., callaghansirishsocialclub.com
Tickets: $8 at the door

With the madness of Mardi Gras creeping closer, Mobile is preparing for an inundation of raucous, festive music. Callaghan’s will be providing the calm before the storm with a show featuring a collaboration from two passionate disciples of old-school folk and country sounds. Serious Sam Barrett & James the Fang will be bringing a setlist of dreamy sounds to the OGD. While the duo specializes in an alluring, captivating acoustic sound, the background of this collaboration is equally as engaging.

Barrett calls Yorkshire, England, home. Even though he hails from across the pond, Barrett’s love of archaic folk and country is undeniable. For the listener, Barrett’s music is a glimpse into the root sounds that immigrants from the British Isles would eventually transform into American folk and country. Barrett’s latest release is “The Seeds of Love.” Throughout this album’s 10 tracks, the mental pictures evoked by Barrett’s music leaves listeners to debate whether they are in the Appalachians or the County of York.

Many attending this performance will recognize James the Fang. Usually, when he visits Mobile, James the Fang is better known as Jamie Barrier of the Pine Hill Haints. For over 20 years, Pine Hill Haints has taken old-fashioned sounds and adrenalized them with elements from the underground, while maintaining a well-defined Americana foundation. The band’s latest release is “The Song Companion of a Lonestar Cowboy,” which showcases the band infusing “Alabama ghost music” with a little Texas flair.

Lovers of early 20th-century folk and country sounds could not ask for a better collaboration than Serious Sam Barrett & James the Fang. Albums such as “North Country Steed” and “The Diamond Horseshoe” show two artists in a symbiotic relationship feeding off each other’s musical influences and resulting in numerous beautiful tracks. Those wanting to ease into the madness of the workweek or the oncoming chaos of Mardi Gras should take advantage of this show.