Player Watch: Missy Raines pushes bluegrass forward

Missy RainesMulti-award winning upright bassist Missy Raines recently spoke about her love for bluegrass, and recent work with her group “New Hip”. Raines is originally from West Virginia and that her love for bluegrass grew from her parents passion for live music.

“My parents didn’t really play music, but they enjoyed listening to music and made it their entertainment to go and hear live music,” she said. “Once (music festivals) came into play, they started going to them, which meant camping out for days at a time. I was along by then and I fell in love with the music. I was surrounded by it.”

Raines says that bluegrass is like jazz in the idea that it very melodic, and is a highly improvised style of music. She also comments that “New Hip” is working to progress and expand the ideas around traditional bluegrass music.

“What I love about bluegrass is that it’s very real, very organic, but in my mind it’s always changing and forming into new things,” Raines said. “I love the idea of what (Bill) Monroe did when he took what was around him and tried to make something different. That’s what we’re trying to do.”

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