Steph Stewart & the Boy Friends

Location: R.A. Fountain

from our promo for this concert

Steph Stewart and the Boyfriends is one of the best of the new bluegrass-sounding alt-American bands in the region. Originally from Catawba, Stewart now lives in Durham, where she has put together an excellent band of classically trained musicians. Mario Arnez plays guitar, Omar Ruiz-Lopez plays fiddle and mandolin; and Nick Vendenberg plays bass. Stewart also plays guitar and banjo.

Stewart’s band has only been together for a couple of years but Steph Stewart and the Boyfriends have already garnered some high praise from critics in the Carolinas. The Charleston City Paper says that her “plaintive vocals conjure up country greats like Loretta Lynnand Emmylou Harris but with a subtler, more modern touch.” Greensboro’s Yes! Weekly notes that she “could follow Gillian Welch and Tift Merristt as the next great female voice in alt-country.”

The band’s Fountain show kicks off a fall tour that will run through October, after which they’ll return to the studio for work on their second CD. 

Tags: acoustic Carolina, alt country, original