Concertgoers were treated to some foot stomping and good, old-fashioned bluegrass mixed in with a selection of more modern tunes at Ballard's Conor Byrne Pub, as Creeping Time celebrated its latest CD release, with guests Captain Gravel, during the art walk on May 13.

The evening's music fell under the category of what the poster aptly titled, "original acoustic grassrock." The concert drew such a crowd, the pub reached capacity and eager customers were lining up outside to get in almost all night.

Dressed up in their Sunday best, Captain Gravel started the evening out with class. The clearly skilled Seattle-based band consisted of Binkle Roberts on banjo, mandolin player Miller McNay, fiddler Michael Connolly, guitarist Chad Gibson and Ingrid Eyen on the upright bass. The synchronized band presented a perfect blend of well-rehearsed, quick-paced picking with a nice, five-part vocal harmony.

They performed a variety of songs with influences from bluegrass to blues to rock to Dixieland, including the sing-along "Son of a Gun" and "Watertown," a toe-tapping tune they wrote for an upcoming film. In "Watertown," Eyen simultaneously sang the lyrics with a Western twang, danced and played the bass, as the men backed her up with their instruments and vocal harmonization. The set featured the talents of all of the band members, who were all equally skilled.

Sadly, many of the lyrics were indecipherable due to the amplification and acoustics at Conor Byrne. However, for those interested in getting a clearer sound, Captain Gravel had copies of their new CD, "Mountain Lair" on sale

Next up was Creeping Time, with lead singer, lyricist and upright bassist Ken Nottingham; drummer and background vocalist Dave Forrester; fiddler Kjell Anderson and Michael Spaly on guitar, mandolin and vocals. The four-man band dressed casually, in t-shirts and jeans.

For their first set, the group performed a mix of original songs from their new album, including the mellow ballad "Haymaker" and the upbeat instrumental "Gary Miner," as well as songs from past albums. They closed the set with a highly-appropriate beer run song in which the audience sang along with the band, "I don't know where I'm gonna go from here. I think I'll just sit down and have me a beer."

For the looser second set, the band invited several musicians to join them, including mandolin-strumming McNay from Captain Gravel; guitarist Scott Andrew; guitarist Ivan Lee, who served as the engineer on Creeping Time's newest CD, "Cheap American Lager" and saxophonist Matt Rankin. To open the set, the group incorporated the classical "Pachelbel's Canon" in one of their songs.

"I almost busted my spleen on that one," joked Spaly after they finished the tune.

Some other popular songs in the set included the danceable "Electrician Blues" and the country-style ballad, "Dirty Old Time." The band obliged the audience with an encore at the end. In all, the musicians presented a concert full of energy, creativity and talent.

The Conor Byrne Pub is located at 5140 Ballard Ave. N.W. For more information on Creeping Time, visit www.creepingtime.com. For additional information on Captain Gravel, visit www.captaingravel.com.