An Irish band with a local musician will be playing First Street Community Center’s Uptown Theatre Sunday, March 26, at 4 p.m. Tickets are $15 and available at the door.
Blame Not the Bard includes musicians Corey Baker on guitar, vocals and percussion, Andrew Philbrick on vocals, banjo and bass guitar, Mount Vernon alum Nikki Philbrick on violin, vocals and mandolin, and Dan Vaughn on flute, whistle and guitar. Vaughn and Baker also share song writing credits.
The band originally formed in 2015, Andrew said, with the founding members playing traditional Irish pub songs at open mics around Iowa City.
“Since then, we have had a few lineup changes and had the opportunity to share our music in six states all across the Midwest,” Andrew said.
The group is excited to be playing at Nikki’s hometown stage.
“Really looking forward to giving people a band experience that is not ‘typical,’” Baker said. “Also, looking forward to playing close to home and letting people know that a cool band lives in the immediate area.”
“I’m excited to play a venue I haven’t played before,” Vaughn said. “I think it’s always exciting to see new places and reach out to new audiences.”
For Nikki, the show is a chance to play in the hometown that gave birth to her musical career.
“It is also a very cool full circle moment for me to get to play a show at the Uptown Theatre, in particular,” Nikki said. “That’s the very same room where I played violin recitals growing up, and where my own students will perform this June.”
Her studio, JA Clair School of Music, hosts pay-what-you-can group fiddle classes at the community center in collaboration with Music Works Iowa, and some of her students will be joining in for a couple of tunes at the show.
“I am so excited to show off the hard work that they are putting in,” Nikki said.
“People can expect a really, really fun show,” Vaughn said. “I like to think we cover a wide variety of different things whether it be instrumentals, originals, covers. We all come from different musical backgrounds and that’s been a real strength of ours when approaching our live show.”
The band specializes in Irish songs and music.
“I enjoy the stories behind each tune and song,” Andrew said. “ You can really get to know the artist’s intent when you can get more details on what they were thinking when writing the songs.”
“There is such a deep well to draw from,” Baker said. “I feel you can do practically anything with Irish music: laugh, cry, think, relax, or just rock out.”
“When I was a teenager, my violin teacher (Janet Ault) took me to see Natalie MacMaster at Hancher auditorium, and I remember being rooted to my seat. I never knew a violin could do that, and I wanted in,” Nikki said. “I felt a connection to the music happening, to the band on the stage, and to the audience around me. What I’ve since learned is that Irish music has the power to connect people from all walks of life into a singular experience. It is so fun to see people who never thought they liked Irish music catch on to this energy and connection for the first time.”
The band encourages people to come to Uptown Theatre for a toe-tapping, hand-clapping good time.
“We are not typical of any band type entertainment that you can find in the area,” Baker said. “Crowd participation is pretty much unavoidable. It is not something you will soon forget.”
Blame Not the Bard performing at First Street Community Center
March 9, 2023
Blame not the Bard
Blame not the Bard 2
About the Contributor
Nathan Countryman, Editor
Nathan Countryman is the Editor of the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.