Bozeman Magazine

Get ready to end the summer in honky-tonk fashion when we welcome the Sweetback Sisters to Big Sky, all the way from Brooklyn! Tonight's concert is generously sponsored by 3 Rivers Communications.

Although formed in Brooklyn during the early 21st century, the Sweetback Sisters model their songs after the vintage country music of 1950s-era Nashville. Central to the group's sound are vocalists Zara Bode and Emily Miller, who first sang together as part of a traveling choir in 2005. Discovering a mutual love for Hank Williams, the girls began singing country songs after their nightly choir performances. When the tour ended, Bode and Miller both moved to Brooklyn and formed the Sweetback Sisters, whose reputation swelled after a performance on A Prairie Home Companion in 2007.

Bode and Miller's harmonies quickly became the backbone of the Sweetback Sisters' sound, although the group's lineup also included four talented instrumentalists: guitarist Ross Bellenoit, guitarist/fiddler Jesse Milnes, drummer Stefan Amidon, and upright bassist Peter Bitenc. Together, the group mined a wealth of twangy influences -- Roger Miller, the Davis Sisters, Nashville country, Western swing -- and made their studio debut by releasing the Bang! EP in 2007. Since then the band has released Chicken Ain't Chicken (2009); Be Back Home Tonight (2010); Looking for a Fight (2011); Country Christmas Sinaalong Spectacular (2012); and Bulldog (2013).

Miller and Bode may not be blood relations, but their precise, family-style harmonies recall the best of country music from the Everlys to The Judds, as well as the spirited rockabilly energy of Wanda Jackson, one of the band’s role models. Like the artists they admire, the Sweetbacks are concerned with the traditional subjects of heartbreak, revenge, remorse and staying strong in the face of relationships gone wrong, albeit with a contemporary sensibility. “We’re a renegade retro band that mixes up country, swing and honky tonk,” explains Bode. “Sometimes what we deliver is straight out of the 50s; other times it’s BR549 meets The B52s.”

Park opens at 6 p.m., music starts at 7 p.m. Food and beverages from local vendors will be available. Please no glass containers or pets allowed in the park during concerts. Admission is free and suitable for all ages! Plenty of parking!