Courtesy of A Prairie Home Companion
After a year of performing on street corners, The Powder Kegs, an oldtime string band that formed at Vassar, got their first break last March when they were called as finalists at A Prairie Home Companion radio show’s People In Their Twenties Talent Show. "We didn’t know what to think," recalls Sam McDougle ’09, one of three Vassar students in the quintet. "We actually recorded the CD at the end of last summer in two days, in a room in Skinner Hall of Music, and unbeknownst to us, Pete’s mom sent it to the show."
After discovering that they were one of six finalists, the Kegs (whose members were spread out between three states) rushed to rehearse before heading to Minnesota’s Fitzgerald Theater in April. "We were in awe of the whole thing - the swanky hotel, all expenses paid, and talking to Garrison Keillor," he says. The Kegs performed in front of their largest audience: 1,500 people for the dress rehearsal and 4.5 million during the radio show. The contest, which initially drew nearly 700 entries, concluded when 11,000 listeners cast their votes, declaring The Powder Kegs their resounding favorite. "We didn’t believe it at first. It was all so surreal," recalls McDougle. "It suddenly legitimized us in a way that was so helpful for getting gigs. In less than a year, our CD sales shot up, selling 1,400 copies."
The Kegs formed at Vassar in the winter of 2005 after McDougle introduced two of his high school band mates to Jake Hoffman ’07 and Pete Winne ’07, who performed a similar style of music in a duet at Vassar. After completing their second summer of touring, performing their unique mix of blues, bluegrass, and American old-time music, the band now resides in Gardiner, where they’re currently writing and recording a new album, while McDougle, a neuroscience major, completes his degree at Vassar. "I don’t get much sleep doing both music and school full-time," he says, "but it’s good because the two are so different and balance each other out." In the meantime, the band is still touring and will perform in New Paltz on October 20. For additional tour dates and information, visit thepowderkegs.com.