Tripping Lily

Tripping Lily. This string band released this third album called The day everything became nothing in 2009. Four musicians on ukulele, violin, guitar, mandolin, bass and vocals. Nice original songs influenced by folk, country, Americana and sort like. This young quartet shows on this two years old album a lot of talent. A song like Summer is beautiful, with soft strings and very nice female/male harmony vocals. And this album has more of these fine songs. But it also contains some well played, but a bit to common tracks. This gives me the feeling that the band has to get rid of a certain shyness. A very promising album with occasionally a fabulous track between solid, well played, but bit riskless acoustic Americana pop. - FolkWorld

Tripping Lily. This string band released this third album called The day everything became nothing in 2009. Four musicians on ukulele, violin, guitar, mandolin, bass and vocals. Nice original songs influenced by folk, country, Americana and sort like. This young quartet shows on this two years old album a lot of talent. A song like Summer is beautiful, with soft strings and very nice female/male harmony vocals. And this album has more of these fine songs. But it also contains some well played, but a bit to common tracks. This gives me the feeling that the band has to get rid of a certain shyness. A very promising album with occasionally a fabulous track between solid, well played, but bit riskless acoustic Americana pop. - FolkWorld

Flower Power
By Steven Rosenfeld
TRIPPING LILY'S fresh spin on roots music is stirring up a lot of fans of modern folk

By Steven Rosenfeld


Tripping Lily


Tripping Lily is an acoustic quartet that plays jaunty, ear-catching modern folk music with snappy rhythms and smart lyrics. The group includes Alex and Demetrius Brecelis, brothers who share mandolin, guitar and vocals, Monica Ruzzio on fiddle and vocals, and Laird Boles on upright bass. The group's roots began in Nashville, where Demetrius and Monica met while making the rounds of open mics and then moved to Boston, where Alex Brecelis and Laird Boles eventually joined.

The band has made waves in Boston-area acoustic circles, and their questioning song about the end ?or not? of a relationship, "Over You," reached #1 on the leading folk radio station. Their debut CD, The Couch Sessions Live, was recorded in the style of old-time bluegrass acts ? musicians clustered around a big microphone, successfully capturing the laid-back but upbeat spirit of their performances.

Their sound stems from all the members contributing to the songwriting, says Demetrius Brecelis. "When the four of us got together for the first time to sit down and create, it was instant," he says. "We just knew that this band was worth developing, and we were relieved. It's not processed. It's very organic."

At first listen, many of their songs seem to be about the gray zones in relationships, but as Brecelis says, it's not that simple. "Five Years or More" could be about a couple, but also is about moving on from a place where one has stayed too long ? such as Nashville. "A lot of the songs on Couch Sessions have to do with the relationship of us and other people, or us looking around at other people," he says, "but it could be one verse here or just one verse there."

"A lot of people seem to relate to these different songs," he says, whether they are true stories or not. The group sees their shows as conversations with their audience and seems to delight in capturing different moods in their songs. The CD's opening track, "Welcome" is typical of that spirit, but is musically intriguing as well, with acoustic poly-rhythms and catchy dynamic stops. To hear Alex Brecelis, a straight-edged guy, endure a series of woe-is-me mishaps in his song, "Nothing Goes," comes off as a goofy, almost satirical performance. Tripping Lily's version of modern folk music replaces an earlier era's earnestness with raised eyebrows, playful attitude and relaxed but precise picking.

Their best-known and poppiest song, "Over You," is typical of their approach. Written by fiddler-vocalist Monica Rizzio, this upbeat-sounding song asks if a failed relationship is really over. "In that song, you say 'over you' with this confidence, but there's this doubt afterward," Brecelis says. "All songs are about specific thoughts. 'I'm over you. I'm not over you.' But this one leaves it up in the air for whoever is listening to it."

Like much bluegrass-inspired music, Tripping Lily focuses on rhythm and melody as much as they do on story lines. Brecelis said the group all play instruments by Chicago luthier Martin Brunkalla, which he said has shaped the group's sound.

"The instruments we play have everything to do with our sound," he says. "They're very unique. They allow us to be percussive. That's the whole thing with the band. We do not have a drummer. So we have to rely on our own rhythmic abilities to create that rhythmic sound in our band."

And then there's the origin of the group's name. "When this project was first forming, people would ask us, 'What style of music is that?'" Brucelis recounts. "We'd say to them, 'You tell us.' And it seems like a good majority of them would say you guys are tripping over different genres. That's where the 'tripping' came from. As far as 'lily,' if you look at the headstock of all our instruments, the builder actually put an abalone lily design on the headstock, and that's where the name of the band came from ? between those two aspects." - Playback Magazine ASCAP

HYANNIS — If the Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra's pops concert had been any more charming, we would have had to beat back Snow White.

If you didn't get a chance to see the annual holiday fest this past weekend, make a note on your new calendar for next year, because it's a delightful way to get into the cheerful spirit of the season.


The orchestra itself, conducted by that prince of charming, Jung-Ho Pak, was in fine form, from the initial bubbling joy of "Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!" (John Williams' rousing contribution to "Home Alone II") to the final notes of a jolly "We Wish You a Merry Christmas."

In between, the concert was filled to the brim with guest appearances by the always welcome Chatham Chorale, the just plain adorable Eddy Elementary School Choir, the lovely soprano Nicole Werner and local favorite (and deservedly so) Tripping Lily. It was a great blend of different styles and voices, each with their own interpretation of holiday music.

Tripping Lily — Monica Rizzio, brothers Demetrius and Alex Becrelis and Laird Boles — no doubt won a lot of new followers with their unique sound, a sort of folk/pop/bluegrass ... well, you have to hear it to categorize it. Rizzio's soft voice was the highlight of a poignant "Santa Will Find You," and the orchestra joined in on an inspired bluegrass rendition of "Away in a Manger." The group brought on six ukelele students from their music school, West Bend Music, to help with the Hawaiian song "Mele Kalikimaka."

- CAPE COD TIMES

"Sure-fire musicianship and smart, incisive lyrics give
Tripping Lily their breezy yet complex style. Multi-instrumentalists
Monica Rizzio, Demetrius and Alex Becrelis, and bassist, Laird
Boles, have honed a distinctive, memorable sound!"
~ Maureen LeBlanc, Nameless Coffeehouse, Cambridge, MA
- Maureen LeBlance, Nameless Coffeehouse

Tripping Lily "For Five Years" # 1 on WUMB Top Ten Playlist. - Boston Globe

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monica Jewel
646.942.7382

rizziomj@yahoo.com


New Band Tripping Lily Hits Boston Area

BOSTON, October 05, 2006- Dynamic new band Tripping Lily (www.trippinglily.com) makes their debut in downtown Boston and surrounding areas. A collaboration of acoustic folk and pop-rock, Tripping Lily brings a truly unique sound to the world of music.

“Tripping Lily’s sound is cutting edge: soothing sounds with outstanding vocals and an almost magical blend of acoustic instruments,” Jim Hughes DJ and host of WOMR, 92.1 said. “They have a sound and style that will appeal to all types of musical tastes, a band with many good things in store for them in the future.”

Tripping Lily was formed over five years ago in Nashville when Demetrius Becrelis (guitar/mandolin/vocals) and Monica Rizzio (fiddle/vocals) started writing and recording the groundwork for what the band would become. When they brought their music to the East Coast, they collaborated with Alex Becrelis (guitarist/mandolinist/vocalist) and Laird Boles (upright bass), and Tripping Lily was born.

Tripping Lily was inviteded to perform at the 2006 IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) Festival in Nashville this September. They have supported artists such as Jake and Taylor Armerding (Northern Lights), Abigail Washburn (Uncle Earl), and Old School Freight Train they have also played such venues as Narrows Performing Arts Center, Club Passim, Cantab Lounge, Nameless Coffeehouse, and Johnny Ds. Tripping Lily draws from a palette of traditional pop-rock inspirations while incorporating sounds from all genres. Their soulful vocal harmonies, melodic jazz/bluegrass creations, and deeply personal lyrics are what make Tripping Lily one of the most unique bands to hit the music scene in a long time. “When you roll jazz, Celtic, bluegrass, pop, folk (and more) all into one, add some solid acoustic rhythm, refreshingly creative harmonies, and polished musicianship, you have Tripping Lily,” Martin Brunkalla owner of Brunkalla Violins said.

Tripping Lily’s LIVE CD “The Couch Sessions” is now available.

For additional information or to request a copy of Tripping Lily’s music, go to www.trippinglily.com or contact Monica Jewel at rizziomj@yahoo.com.
# # #
- Monica Jewel

“When you roll jazz, Celtic, bluegrass, pop, folk (and more) all into one, add some solid acoustic rhythm, refreshingly creative harmonies, and polished musicianship, you have Tripping Lily,” Martin Brunkalla owner of Brunkalla Violins. - Martin Brunkalla

“Tripping Lily’s sound is cutting edge: soothing sounds with outstanding vocals and an almost magical blend of acoustic instruments,” Jim Hughes DJ and host of WOMR, 92.1 said. “They have a sound and style that will appeal to all types of musical tastes, a band with many good things in store for them in the future.” - WOMR- Bradford Street Bluegrass Radio Hour

Equal parts sassy bluegrassers and moody urban songwriters, jazzy jammers and sighing torch singers, Tripping Lily is nearly a genre unto itself. The folk-pop quartet formed in Nashville, but calls Boston home now, and its sound appeals to neotrad and alt fans alike. Guitars, mandolins, and fiddles prance behind airy, quirky melodies that feel both rootsy and modern. The harmonies lull like lullabies, then jolt as if shot through jumper cables. - Boston Globe - Scott Alarik