MAGOO TAKE BLUEGRASS SOMEWHERE NEW / DEEP ELLUM ART CO / 01.02.27
The Colorado quartet bring their adventurous approach to bluegrass to DEAC, combining remarkable instrumental ability, three-part harmonies and the freedom to take familiar sounds somewhere unexpected.
– JAMBALOO EDITORIAL TEAM
There is a particular pleasure in watching four musicians who know exactly what they’re doing abandon any certainty about where a song might finish. Colorado’s Magoo have built their reputation around that possibility.
The Denver quartet of guitarist Erik Hill, Dobro player Dylan Flynn, mandolinist Courtlyn Bills and bassist Denton Turner belong to a thriving progressive bluegrass community where the traditions of acoustic music are treated as a starting point rather than a set of restrictions. Their playing is extraordinarily accomplished, but technique is only interesting when somebody knows what to do with it.
Their debut album, What a Life, released in February 2026, demonstrates how comfortably they move between carefully constructed songwriting and extensive instrumental exploration. The arrangements are intricate without becoming cluttered, with three-part harmonies providing a melodic foundation that allows the musicians to wander considerably further than the songs initially suggest.
There are impressive credentials throughout the group. Flynn won the Dobro competition at RockyGrass in 2024, while Hill finished second in the festival’s flatpicking guitar contest. Magoo have also earned recognition at UllrGrass, WinterWonderGrass and Telluride, establishing themselves among a new generation of musicians approaching bluegrass with considerable imagination.
Their debut features an appearance from Sam Bush, one of the musicians most responsible for expanding the genre’s possibilities. It is an appropriate connection for a band that understands its history without feeling obliged to reproduce it.
Much of Magoo’s appeal becomes clearest onstage. Their compositions offer enough structure to keep the melodies memorable and sufficient freedom for the musicians to follow an unexpected idea. The relationship between Hill’s guitar, Bills’ mandolin, Flynn’s Dobro and Turner’s bass makes that interplay fascinating to watch.
Deep Ellum Art Co provides a suitably intimate setting for a band whose music rewards close attention. A few days into the new year, Magoo offer Dallas an opportunity to hear just how far four acoustic instruments can travel together.
