Artist The Junior League Band

Junior League Band takes old-timey music as its starting point, grounding many of its songs in plucky threads of banjo, acoustic guitar, and fiddle. Then again, these D.C. youngsters are careful not to award themselves the title of “bluegrass” either, as they turn those traditional elements into energetic and sometimes gentle pop songs. It might sound a bit more gritty and rootsy if banjo player Lissy Rosemont’s lead vocals charged up to the front a bit more (and her voice does have its charms), but judging by her breathy performance on 2008’s Mitchell Williams Fo Govena, or the a cappella traditional Irish song that closes 2010’s Jelly Roll, the band is going for a different vibe that’s a little more open to mixing up styles.

Updated 02/08/2012