I grew up listening to bluegrass music. I jokingly tell people that I didn't realize that music consisted of anything but bluegrass until I was ten years old...but that's almost a true statement. My childhood consisted of driving down a long dirt road in my daddy's old dodge pickup truck, listening to Bela Fleck, New Grass Revival, Allison Krauss, Robert Earl Keen. This kind of music was the center of my childhood.
When I first heard the Avett Brothers, I was 18 years old. I was hooked instantly. It felt like home but at the same time was like nothing I'd ever heard. I bought Emotionalism and played it continuously for about a month. It was always in my car radio, always blaring out of my computer or iPod. I made all my friends listen to it, and they all fell in love with it, too.
I love this music because it's honest. it's beautiful and painful and real. It makes me long for something undefinable. These songs are embedded into my psyche and into my heart. I told a friend of mine that I think if someone could extract my soul, it would sound like an Avett Brother's song.
So why do I love the Avett Brothers? Because I just can't help myself.