Artist The Okee Dokee Brothers

We’ll be the first to admit being new to the “kindie” game (kid+indie), but The Okee Dokee Brothers—a Minneapolis family-geared bluegrass duo—seem like kind of a big deal. For one, their latest album, Take It Outside, won a Parents’ Choice award (which is pretty much a Kids’ Choice award, but more bitter and less full of whimsy). Bluegrass and roots music seem like strikingly non-irritating platforms for children’s songs to take. For further proof of this, go to The Okee Dokee Brothers’ online video page: Joe Mailander and Justin Lansing have tapped into something light, funny, and catchy that’s for kids and yet still instrumentally adept. The fact that the duo can still play gigs at a bar is a testament to that. With Minneapolis kid-friendly Koo Koo Kangaroo killing it on tour with Yo Gabba Gabba Live! this year, is Minneapolis a new hub for the blossoming “kindie” scene?

Updated 12/06/2011