Bassist and vocalist Zak Bunce has parted ways with Detour due to a recent promotion at his “day job.” Zak is now the Manager of McLain Cycle and Fitness in Cadillac, Michigan, and will need to be onsite six days a week. We wish Zak great success in his new endeavor and encourage you to stop in and see him for all your cycle needs.

While Zak will be missed, both personally and musically, we have no doubt that Detour will continue to break new ground in bluegrass, satisfying our current dedicated fan base while drawing new crowds.

Driving the rhythm at our next gig will be Jack Grant, a tremendous bassist from the Grand Rapids area. Jack is no stranger to the Michigan music scene, and those of you who’ve followed Midwest bluegrass for a while may remember him pickin’ and singin’ with Jeff and Scott in the Porkypines. After a sojourn to the west, Jack is happy to be back in Michigan and playing with his old buddies.

Invigorated by the recent changes, we are reinterpreting some old favorites, and Jeff has been inspired to write some new tunes. This newly rekindled energy will certainly be evident on our third release, which we’ll soon start working on at Scott’s Frontier Recording.

Please join us at Mona Shores School in Muskegon on Saturday, November 6, and give Jack a big shake and howdy. We’ll be making our second appearance with the Mona Shores Fiddlers at their ninth annual Fiddle Festival. These talented middle and high school students will knock your boots off, and we’re excited to be sharing the stage with them again. The concert begins at 7 p.m. with the Fiddlers, followed by Detour, then a monster jam. Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for students and senior citizens and may be purchased at Meyer Music in Muskegon and the Healthy Pantry in Whitehall or at the door. Click here to learn more.

We hope to see you on the road that lies ahead!

Missy Armstrong duets with Dale Ann Bradley -- courtesy Jimmy Kittle

The Detour crew took its chart-busting (#22 this month on the BU national survey!) road show into the Keystone State last weekend for some great music at the Out Among the Stars Bluegrass Festival in Benton, the heart of the Alleghenies. We had a great time jamming with Joe Walsh of the awesome Gibson Brothers and visiting with former Detourista Mike Sumner, now playing with Dale Ann Bradley. The number one taker for Weird Moment of the Trip was at an I-80 rest area in Pennsylvania, where a state worker with a chip on his shoulder stopped Jeff, Peter, and Scott from exercising their constitutional right to play frisbee.  Scott was well into preparing his closing argument for Detour v. State of Pennsylvania when we subsequently learned from coworkers at a later rest area that this guy was, to put it mildly, incorrect.

But the real highlight of the trip was having Dale Ann Bradley join us on stage for a stirring rendition of I’ve Just Seen the Rock of Ages with our own Missy Armstrong. The vocal blend was just heavenly! Thank you, Dale Ann, and thank you OATS for a great musical weekend!

For some great photos of our performance there, check out the photo albums posted online by the OATS photographer!

If you’d like to help us reach a larger audience — and maybe continue to move up that chart! — feel free to request airplay from your favorite local, Internet, or satellite stations. Sirius/XM subscribers, you can call Bluegrass Junction at 1-877-98-BANJO or request a song online.