DENVER, COLO. (06/10/08) -- Uncle Earl is fast proving to be one of Colorado's best string bands and on Friday, June 27 at 8 p.m., Swallow Hill is pleased to welcome two of its shining members, KC Groves and Kristin Andreassen, as they perform together, along with special guests to be announced.

In 1997, Kristin Andreassen and KC Groves met on the front steps of Gribble Hall at the Augusta Heritage Center in Elkins, WV. It wasn't long before they were trading steps and singing old country songs. In 2004, Groves founded Uncle Earl and Andreassen joined up. "It was really Kristin's old-time sense of rhythm from her years of clogging that sealed the deal on the Uncle Earl sound,” notes Grives.

Since then, Uncle Earl, with band mates Rayna Gellert and Abigail Washburn, has toured the world and dazzled crowds from the Kennedy Center to the Rhyman Auditorium. The band eventually gained the attention and respect of John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin, who produced their latest album, Waterloo, Tennessee.

While not touring with Uncle Earl, both ladies have had busy and successful solo careers. Between the the two of them, they clog (Andreassen was a member of the prestigious Footworks Dance Ensemble), fiddle, and play guitar, mandolin, and ukulele. They have both gained respect as songwriters as Andreassen recently won the John Lennon Song writing contest and Groves was a finalist in the 2000 Telluride Troubadour Competition.

While Uncle Earl is taking some well-deserved time off this summer, Groves and Andreassen are playing some shows together, including this one at Swallow Hill in Denver. This show will include some Uncle Earl material as well as showcase their own songwriting and sister-like harmonies, and will include some very special surprise guests.