It’s been a while since I’ve seen a band embody a cultural tradition the way Shovels and Rope does with Americana music. The genre itself seems to be reemerging against the backbone of the digital era and its close cousin, advice pop-country. But if a back-to-back weekend booking at Royale is an indication of its reawakening, view then Shovels and Rope are at the forefront of the movement. Not to mention that there was also a two day Americana festival going on across town in Harvard Square the same weekend.

Now what Americana is defined by is often obscure and debatable, online but essentially I believe it’s the capability of the listener to hear where the roots and tradition of the music comes from. You can trace it back to another place and time, like a historical artifact. It has to remain unadulterated or it loses the tag and this is what Shovels and Rope does so well.  With just a simplistic guitar and drum set-up, husband and wife duo Michael Trent and Carrie Ann Hearst tore through and hour and a half set Friday night and helped everyone remember that music is meant to warm the heart, give hope to the people and that the world isn’t such a bad place after all.

The versatility of Shovels and Rope is probably one of their biggest strengths. To my surprise, they do indeed pull in fans from the pop-country world which I only learned about after chatting it up with some passionate fans that discovered them from the FM dial. Which led me to ask if there anything left on terrestrial radio that isn’t pop-country?  Needless to say, there was plenty of plaid and denim at this show, but no hats, thank god. There was some good old fashioned rock n’ roll however highlighted by songs like “Evil,” and “Ohio”, both tracks off of their latest release Swimmin Time.

Overall though, Shovels and Rope is defined by the chemistry between the coupling of Trent and Hearst. Their ability to harmonize beautiful vocals over fuzzy guitars, rag-time keys and a simple three piece drum kit is what makes them so endearing. They filled the room with their sweaty passionate music that wasn’t going to twist your ear in any way unfamiliar, but instead take you on a geographical musical trip to the deep-south. However shameful that might seem to us northerners, or bleakness their band-name might invoke, the music that was born out of it is some of richest and most honest ever known to man, and Shovels and Rope personified it in every way.