Folk This

The Cave Singers’ Derek Fudesco grabbed his sunburst Gibson hollow-body and took a seat on a stool. Singer Pete Quirk stood at the mic and peered out from under a trucker hat, his face shrouded with thick red beard. Drummer Marty Lund held a stick in one hand and mini-maracas in the other. It looked like the beginning of another monotonous indie-folk show.

But when Fudesco started hammering the fret board and finger-picking the opening notes to "Leap" and Quirk stomped on the plywood stage, howling in a raspy, pitch-perfect melody, the Cave Singers showed they adhere to no folk formula but their own -- an explosion of rootsy blues and punk.

"My feet are on the ground, my head is in the sound, and baby we need, we're flying free..." sang Quirk before putting the harp to his mouth for some extra layers.

Band and audience maintained the stomp throughout the 13-song set. Even on slower tunes like "Beach House" -- a stripped-down ditty with a note-y guitar riff, smack of maraca, and Quirk's syncopated squawk.

For the last song of the set, "Dancing on Our Graves," drummer Marty Lund beat on the kick drum, Fudesco ran the length of the fret board hammering the strings, and Quirk accosted a tambourine while belting "But, oh Lord, I know what I've done. And, oh Lord, I ain't afraid!"

• Concert: The Cave Singers
• Show date: March 12
• Venue: Casbah
• Seats: pinned against the stage