The Hackensaw Boys are returning to Gainesville, and fans can expect anything from the eclectic string band.
“It’s been a few years since they were last here, and good string bands touring through Gainesville are hard to find,” said Pat Lavery, owner of Glory Days Presents.
The band will perform Tuesday at the High Dive, located at 210 SW Second Ave.
Doors open at 8 p.m., and the show begins at 9. Tickets can be purchased for $12 at the door. Advanced tickets can be purchased for $10 on ticketweb.com.
The Virginia-based string band initially formed in the fall of 2000 with founding member David Sickmen.
What started as a group of friends with a desire to play Appalachian Folk music resulted in playing various prominent music festivals, including All Good Music Festival, Bonnaroo, Telluride and Floydfest.
After years of touring, the lead singer and guitarist left the band to spend more time with his family.
“In 2005, I felt like I had to stay home more, so I stepped aside,” Sickmen said. “In 2012, by chance, I had seen one of the members and he was basically saying the band might stop; I thought that was horrible and I came back.”
The band is on a U.S. tour while preparing for the release of its new album in the fall.
The current lineup includes Brian Gorby on percussion, David Sickmen on guitar, Jimmy Stelling on banjo and Ferd Moyse on the fiddle.
Sickmen said the band’s name came from one of the original group members, who described the name as the motion of sawing something really hard.
“At first I was not sold on the name,” Sickmen said, “but I learned to love it very quickly.”
Attendees can expect to hear the band’s unique instrument, the charismo, during the show. The charismo is a homemade percussion instrument created by former member Justin Neuhardt.
“It’s kind of like functioning art,” Sickmen said. “It’s a sculpture that you play.”
The band has made at least 100 different charismos. Each is made with tin cans and played with spoons.
Sickmen described the band’s musical style to be their own, due to the fact that there have been multiple songwriters in the group.
“We all are songwriters. We just wanted to get our songs together to create old-school music,” Sickmen said.
