**Billy Pilgrim live at Eddie's Attic!** Folk rock duo Billy Pilgrim,
comprised of Andrew Hyra and Kristian Bush, will celebrate its 34th
anniversary in 2024 with a rejuvenated dedication to soulful
storytelling, artful harmonies and an understanding that the duo –
just like its members – is creatively weightier and more diverse
than contemporary labels. "There were so many things that were
interesting about Kristian and me as musical compatriots," Hyra said.
"Both of us are strong, individualist writers, but we have a unique
harmony. You can have a unique voice and the other guy can have a
unique voice, but when you sing together, that's a transcendent
thing." The men met in 1990 at a songwriters' night in Knoxville,
Tennessee. They recorded and released five albums by 2001 -- two on
Atlantic Records that were rich with songs, including "Sweet Louisiana
Sound" and "Insomniac," a cultural phenomenon with such legs it was
recently profiled in the New York Times 29 years after its release.
Named for a character in Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five," Billy
Pilgrim was the first band for Bush and Hyra, who each found
additional musical success outside of the duo. Hyra co-founded the
Smokin' Novas with Atlanta guitarist Brian Bristow and
producer/engineer Don McCollister. Bush formed multi-platinum-selling,
Grammy-winning duo Sugarland, launched his solo career, started
writing musicals and produces chart-topping country singer Megan
Moroney. Billy Pilgrim went on hiatus for more than a decade while
Bush and Hyra pursued outside ventures. But the duo reunited at the
2015 30A Songwriter Festival. Bush was in the midst of his solo set
when Hyra walked on stage and finished the song. Since then, Billy
Pilgrim released "In the Time Machine," an album initially believed
lost in a studio fire in 2000. The master recordings were a causality
of the blaze, but Bush found a copy while going through his closets
during coronavirus quarantine. The men dropped "Billy Pilgrim Is Your
Friend (Live from the Studio)" one year later. In 2023, Bush featured
Billy Pilgrim on "Love and Blue Jeans" and "Longneck with Jesus" on
his "52|This Year" album. The fresh songs lean more Americana than
folk and are true to the duo's East Tennessee heritage. "Musical stuff
for me is about chemistry, and it's the kind of chemistry you don't
know until you're in it," Bush said. "Creative chemistry is how I
bounce up against Andrew and he bounces up against me and it's a
complete mystery. Expect when it happens, it's completely absorbing."
Billy Pilgrim played a host of shows in 2023, with more slated for
2024. Bush and Hyra have honed their harmony for over three decades,
and this year, the men are poised to re-introduce their defining
nimble blend to new fans coast to coast. Presented by Eddie's Attic.
This is an all ages event.
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10/07/2025 Last update