With buckets and spoons, Hillstomp returns to Montana

Portland blues band Hillstomp are passing through Billings next week on a regional tour that includes Washington, Idaho and Montana.

The band recently released a live album, After Two But Before Five, showcasing their self-titled genre of “junkbox blues,” a hodgepodge of folk, punk, blues and bar busking.

Vocalist and drummer John Johnson performs on upturned plastic buckets with a washboard strung around his neck and a maraca taped to one of his hands. Guitarist and vocalist Henry Kammerer cycles through a half dozen guitars while on stage, as well as banjo.

Montana tour dates include April 16 in Missoula at The Palace, April 17 in Billings at Railyard Ale House, an in-store at Cactus Records April 18 in Bozeman as well as a show that evening at the Filling Station.

MP3: Goin’ Down South