That's Just How They Roll

Ever know one of those dudes who can play just about any instrument you throw at him? Meet Aaron Keim: multi-instrumentalist, scholar, teacher, craftsman and talented everything-man. He’s been playing with the indie-Americana group Boulder Acoustic Society for some time now, but that doesn’t mean he can’t find time to play solo on the side — be it ukelele, French horn or otherwise — and that’s all just part of doing what he loves. His style faces backward to traditions of old — dating back to the Great Depression and beyond — but he still pioneers new ways of playing, thinking and adoring old-time music: Clawhammer-style ukelele, for example, is not a common occurrence (Clawhammer is generally reserved as a banjo technique), but Keim said fuck it and did it anyway, because that’s just how he rolls.



James Hill, who’s been known to join Keim and the Boulder Acoustic Society, is of the same breed. His focus is hard bent away from ukelele, though, and he’s worked tirelessly to cultivate a following for the instrument that doesn’t see it typecast as a Hawaiian traditional. The versatility of Hill’s playing is fairly remarkable considering he’s pushed through since the early 2000s — a time when ukelele held next to no weight in popular or indie music culture. Hill is well respected in Hawaii, too, despite attempting to drag the uke away ever so slightly from its roots, and he’s been praised for his ability to blend in with ukelele culture even though he’s really just a talented-as-hell kid from Canada — not unlike Keim, that’s just how he rolls.

Aaron Keim & James Hill play 7:30 pm, Thursday, Sept. 15, at Agate Alley’s Laboratory; $13.50 adv., $15 door.

EW 9/15