Awen Family Band - A LaMP Afterparty

Awen Family Band plays Kings on Thursday, October 15, as a LaMP afterparty. It's a homecoming of sorts: the band played its first show at Kings back on June 5, 2019, and they've spent the years since touring festivals, concert series, venues, parks, and backyards across the country.

Founded by singer-songwriter and coddie-wompler Tim Husk, Awen Family Band is a world boogie collective that draws from an ever-changing cast of artists. They describe themselves as vessels for the spirit to move through, guided by the message, "We don't create the lesson, only move the message." That revolving-door approach is a big part of their sound, which pulls from a wide range of global roots styles: Zydeco, Bluegrass, Funk, West African Traditional Music, Old Time, Indie, Swing, Celtic, Folk, Psychedelic, Jam, and Boogie. It's a lot to fit into one set, and the mix changes depending on who's on stage.

Over the years, the collective has featured members of Toubab Krewe, Big Something, Dr. Bacon, Charlie Hunter, The Kind Thieves, The Fundamentals, Self Help, TUB, Firewater Tent Revival, Custard Pie, Mellow Swells, The Moon Unit, and FRUTE. If you've caught any of those acts around town, you've heard some of the threads that weave into this one.

The show starts at 9 PM at Kings, 14 W. Martin St. in downtown Raleigh, with doors opening an hour early. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 on the day, and if you're wearing a LaMP wristband, it's $10.