The Windy City Opry had a big night on Wednesday, May 8 with three bands featured. I really wanted to see Jess Knights, but missed her set as well as Dennis Bouwman, but was just in time to be blown away by a group of young bucks from Saskatchewan called the Local Group. 
The multi-instrumentalists looked to be barely out of their teens, but had boundless energy and musical chops to match.
The upright bassist was in the middle of a Irish pipe solo as I arrived, which immediately made me think of Winnipeg’s the Dühks.
But they showed substantial musical chops on several bluegrass numbers, as they gathered around a single mic to harmonize and taking turns to unleash blazing solos on mandolin, guitar and banjo. The upright bassist switched to fiddle near the end of their set.
They switched instruments throughout their set as well.
They played a lot of traditional bluegrass, but also added a cover of Johnny Cash’s “Cocaine Blues,” which they turned into a bluegrass song.
