Local family band joins Haley Bonar for Bishop show

This weekend, two touring acts and a local band will bring their indie alternative sounds to The Bishop on South Walnut Street.

Alternative country singer-songwriter Haley Bonar, Sin Ropas and Bloomington family band Blue Cut will each perform at 8 p.m. Sunday.

Bishop booking agent Andy Goheen said that although the atmosphere of The Bishop is dependent on the music, he is expecting Bonar to bring a good crowd.

“I saw her at South by Southwest Music Festival and thought she put on a great live show,” Goheen said.

Goheen said he is excited that this will be a top-notch show.

Bonar has been playing piano since she was four and writing songs since she was 15 years old. After dropping out of college, she moved to Minneapolis in 2004 to pursue music.

“I went to school to do something normal – I didn’t plan on a music career,” she said.
Bonar said this does not mean she will not go back to school, but right now she is taking her music more seriously.

She has been touring since she was 19, traveling for tours with artists such as Andrew Bird and Low. For her high school graduation present from her parents, Bonar asked for 1,000 copies of her CD to be printed.

“For my second album I didn’t know I was going to keep making records, but I like being in the studio and engineering,” Bonar said.

Bonar will be performing songs from her 2008 release “Big Star.”

“It is about love, relationships, moving on and struggles as an independent musician,” Bonar said.

Bonar’s musical influences include Nirvana, Joni Mitchell and John Lennon.

Bonar has been nannying for a long time and just finished producing and recording a kids’ EP, “Sing With Me.”

“Kids are awesome to play for because they are so goofy, and I tend to like them better than adults, so I thought it was about time,” Bonar said.

She has performed in Bloomington before at Bear’s Place and the Buskirk-Chumley Theater.

“I love that town and I really like going to Root’s, so I’ll make a stop there,” Bonar said of Bloomington.

Local family band Blue Cut will open the show with their Americana and folk melodies.
“It is important to showcase local bands because they are good, and it is good for them to get the experience performing at a show on a larger scale,” Goheen said.

Blue Cut includes father Michael Latham and his children, Bethany Latham on bass and Jacob Latham on mandolin.

“We all three love music, especially Jacob. He is the engine that drives the band,” Michael Latham said. 

Each member of Blue Cut is a songwriter, but Michael Latham said just because his children are young does not mean their music will only attract teenagers.

“The songs they write do not sound like they were written by kids because they have listened to so much music that they tend to express themselves in a more musically mature way,” Michael Latham said.

The band usually plays covers on stage but will only play original songs for Sunday’s performance.

“We wrote a lot of songs that tend to feature mandolin solos for Jacob to shine, then songs that feature Bethany’s great voice, and we try to mix it up to give the audience something different for each song,” Michael Latham said.

Michael Latham said the advantage of being a family is that music is constantly a topic of conversation. But at times, the family differs on musical interests.

“Bethany is really into Feist and pop or rap, which I do not care for,” Michael Latham said. “Jacob is obsessed with Bob Dylan but I quickly am tired of listening to him, and I really like vintage country artist Junior Brown, but Jacob cannot stand him.”

Some artists they do agree on are Gillian Welch, the Wailin’ Jennys and Old Crow Medicine Show.Michael Latham said Blue Cut plays at Crazy Horse every couple months, and on Dec. 16 they will travel to The Earth House in Indianapolis.