Railroad Earth rolls into Rochester this Friday, June 5 at Water Street Music Hall — hard on the heels of a raging late night performance, and a phenomenal Friday night Grandstand stage performance at DelFest. This band is no stranger to Rochester, fans here are ecstatic.

In a vast sea of live music it can be difficult to not group certain bands into genres, categorizing is human nature in a way, a need to group like things together so they are easily accessible when needed. Some things, some music, however can not necessarily be labeled or pigeonholed.

Railroad Earth is a fine example of a band that does not fit into one box. With a strong traditional bluegrass sound, a funky roots dance beat, and lyrics that make our souls smile like a buddha — RRE does not fit just one genre. Their appeal resonates with jamband lovers to bluegrass traditionalists and everything in between. Simply put, this band knows how to throw down a dance party of epic proportions.

RRE has been wowing fans across the country since 2001 with constant touring, returning festival appearances and even their own Hangtown Halloween Ball festival. Their dedicated fans have created a community around their music, calling themselves Hobos and traveling the country from show to show vying for a spot to ‘ride the rail’.

Before they come to Rochester RRE will play the East Stage at the 11th annual Mountain Jam Festival at Hunter Mountain tonight at 8:00pm. The festival is offering a live stream of the weekend with single day passes on a ‘pay what you want’ basis, to benefit Teen Cancer America. You can purchase your streaming passes online for one day or all four days.

In August the band will set out on a string of five shows with Warren Haynes in support of his newest solo album Ashes & Dust — featuring Railroad Earth. A stop in North Tonawanda, NY at Niagara River Rocks on Aug.7 will be a free show for all ages.

The shows in support of Haynes coupled with the performances at DelFest year after year, only proves that RRE has come to join the ranks of major stars, in what will be considered the revitalization of the bluegrass/americana/roots/jamgrass genre to future generations.

The June 5 show at Water Street Music Hall will start at 8:00pm with doors opening at 7:00pm. Opening up the night will be Matt Anderson. Tickets are still available online, at the venue box office, and Aaron’s Alley on Monroe Ave. in Rochester.

Railroad Earth is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon, so hop on board and come ride the rail with local Hobos and NYS Music this Friday night.