With their enchanting debut album, Dreamsongs, Etc., Bill and the Belles have captured the freewheeling, lighthearted approach to music that has endeared them to listeners of every generation. With a spirited sound that falls somewhere between old-time country and vaudeville, the group puts its own spin on a golden era of music, specifically the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s.
"We like old music and some of us are consumed by it," says lead singer and guitarist Kris Truelsen with a knowing laugh. "But we don't have a desire to copy it. We want to sound like ourselves and tell our story."
As a result, a majority of the material on DreamSongs, Etc., is original, from the upbeat number, "Wedding Bell Chimes," through the yearning ode to youth, "Back to My Childhood Days." While Truelsen's distinctive tenor anchors the project, the Tennessee-based band's trio harmonies gleam against a backdrop of banjo, fiddle, accordion, ukulele, and clarinet.
