Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds

Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds, a New York soul-funk outfit, came together in 2008 under singer and songwriter Arleigh Kincheloe. Having already attracted notice in their home Catskill Mountains region, dynamic-voiced Arleigh and her harmonica-playing brother Jackson moved downstate to New York City, where they assembled a full soul ensemble that included guitarist Sasha Brown, bassist Josh Myers, drummer Dan Boyden, trumpeter Phil Rodriguez, and saxophonist Brian Graham. By summer 2009 the band had earned a reputation for high-energy performances that fused soul, funk, blues, rock, and country during their weekly engagement at Rockwood Music Hall. That same live cohesion was documented on the self-titled 2010 debut, captured in one marathon twelve-hour session at Avatar Studios in New York. The following year brought nonstop touring that expanded their audience nationwide and secured opening slots alongside Dr. John, Gov’t Mule, and Counting Crows. Their second album, Pound of Dirt, appeared in 2012 and was succeeded a year later by the Fight EP, produced by Grammy-winning American Idol judge Randy Jackson. Continued roadwork led to festival bookings at Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits, and the Jazz & Heritage Festival in New Orleans. For their third LP the group recruited producer Ryan Hadlock (Vance Joy, the Lumineers) and tracked the record at the famed rural studio Bear Creek outside Seattle; The Weather Below reached listeners in summer 2015.