Larkspur Stand at The Commonwealth Pub
Sat, January 18, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Larkspur Stand, from Bend, OR is a Central Oregon acoustic/electric band. Crafting through country blues, folk, & bluegrass, singer-songwriter Jake Soto creates energetic originals on guitar with splashes of harmonica. Not to be outdone by Jake, Garrett Miller (Skillethead) adds some cosmic country with his clever song writing, diverse banjo abilities, and warm vocals – always mixing in fun familiar tunes. Matt McConnell (The Critical Blues Band) brings his swift solid sound on the bass. Patrick Bedard (Jess Ryan Band & Sweet Red) holds down the fort with his delicate precision on the light drum kit. Rounding out the mix is Bob Morris, a creative writing contributor on percussion playing spoons and cajon – Bob will convince you all bands should have spoons. The current lineup has organically developed through the rich musical community of Bend, Oregon. Each member brings their unique experiences from past musical endeavors to create what you get to hear from Larkspur Stand.
A sound that’s been marinating since its inception in 2017, in 2023 the band set out to record their first full album with a refreshed lineup, and released “Sitting Here With You” in 2024. At the very start of 2020, Larkspur Stand began recording their EP “Road Trip Playlist”, and released in Sept-2020. COVID times turned into a woodshedding phase and it felt like a dogged few years of getting back into the swing of it, but these guys’ love of music and steady determination has them planning for continuous music!
Originally, the band started out as a ragtag duo called Nick & Jake Project in early 2017, but the duo eventually enticed other musicians into the blend. In a self-realization that the movement was more than just Nick Chapoy (Blackstrap Bluegrass) & Jake, the name evolved into Larkspur Stand from the neighborhood Jake dwells within. Bob, Jake’s neighbor, eventually let them know he plays the spoons. Nat Berliner (Natty Red) told the group that he was going to buy a bass to play with them, and we are ever so grateful he did – lucky to have him record with us on Road Trip Playlist. In Feb 2020, Nat had to bow out, then Jeshua Marshall (GOTU, Larry & His Flask) sat in on bass when available. Garrett (Skillethead) joined the group in 2018 through the recommendation of Nick, then Nick left for an adventure in Africa (seriously, he did, to study primates in Ugandan forests). We eventually ran into another neighbor, Jason, and were blown away by his pedal steel skills!
