Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys Perform at Beer Fest

Photo by Michael Erlewine.

If the desire to hear brilliantly crafted genre-bending tunes, dance in the street and enjoy an energetic performance isn’t enough to get you to see Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys, perhaps hearing the true story of Lindsay Lou’s bank-robbing aunt will sway your decision.

That was one of the things that took me from “like” to “love” with Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys, a youthful, fun bluegrass-esque band performing at the Door County Beer Festival in Baileys Harbor on June 15.

“We play a really unique style of traditional music,” Lindsay Lou said. “It’s traditional in the sense that we’re educated by bluegrass, jazz, swing and American roots music. We have our own take on it, and I don’t know many other bands that have done what we’ve done – combine soulful swing vocals with bluegrass instrumentation.”

I saw the band play at The White Gull Inn in November, on a chilly night in Door County. The audience packed into wooden chairs, and it was a test of self-control not to get up and dance.

Even from the second row it was clear how much fun the band members had together – between songs they told personal stories, made banjo jokes and took playful jabs at each other. They totally entertained the crowd.

“I really loved Lindsay Lou & the Flatbellys, and I can give them a great recommendation,” said Andy Coulson, owner of the White Gull Inn. “They have tremendous energy. They have a great rapport with the crowd. It’s nice bluegrass music with a touch of swing to it.”

Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys hail from Michigan, where they met at an open mic night in a Lansing bar. They’ve taken their act on the road across the country and produced two albums, A Different Tune (2010) and Release Your Shrouds (2012).

They’ve even developed a new name for their bluegrass-esque sound: “Lougrass.”

“The whole idea of bluegrass totally changed from what it used to be,” Lou said. “A lot of people hear the word bluegrass and think of a manly twangy kind of backhills [music], and that’s not what we do.”

Stop by the Door County Beer Festival at noon to see Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys put on a great toe-tappin’, knee-slappin’ performance, and play original music and classic bluegrass tunes.

To hear some of the band’s songs before the show, go to lindsayloumusic.com, or find the video “From Seed To Sprout: The Story of Lou-grass” on Youtube.com.

You may be lucky enough to hear some of the tales that inspired the band’s songs, like the bank-robbing auntie and the moonshinin’ grandpa.

If you do, expect to go from “like” to “love.”