(Host) In 2001, Burette and Gabrielle Douglas left Texas in a truck full of vintage keyboards, guitars, and amplifiers. The couple settled in Vermont, and within a few years the dreamy psychedelic rock of their band The Cush made them one of Burlington’s most beloved musical acts. Recently, the Douglases decided to return to Texas to be closer to their families.
VPR music contributor Matt Bushlow has this profile.
(Bushlow) Burette and Gabrielle Douglas put in their time in the Dallas, Texas, music scene. Their band, Buck Jones, recorded three albums for a Dallas label, and toured the U.S.
When Buck Jones ran its course, the Douglases decided it was time to make a change.
"Just wanted to do something-get out of the South and come to the Northeast, where things were more compact and we could go down and play in New York and Boston."
(Bushlow) The Cush didn’t know anyone in Vermont, and they say their first year here was slow. But as they searched for the right players to fill out their band, they formed close friendships with Burlington musicians like Ryan Power, Colin Clary, Brett Hughes, and Missy Bly.
"I just noticed how the musicians here were very open-armed and supportive right away."
(Bushlow) Local press was supportive as well. Brent Hallenbeck, Arts and Entertainment Writer for the Burlington Free Press, saw the band for the first time at a sparsely attended downtown show.
"They would often start sort of slow and quiet, and then build up, build up, build up to a real crescendo and kind of come down again. They were really masters of, um, the tension-and-release concept of songwriting, I think that’s what made them stand out for me, above most any band in town."
(Bushlow) Soon the Cush was working on their second album called New Appreciation for Sunshine, with an ever-evolving line-up of Burlington’s best-known rock musicians. Looking back, Gabrielle can see how Vermont’s culture influenced and changed the way she approached writing music.
"The free-spiritedness that’s, to me, very evident here, helped me to let go, more, and explore musically. And that was liberating."
(Bushlow) New Appreciation for Sunshine was filled with slow-burning psych-pop and cosmic country-rock influences. It garnered critical acclaim, in Vermont and beyond.
(Bushlow) Each year The Cush would go home to Texas every year for about ten days. In 2007, they stayed for a few months. And during their visit this past winter, it became clear that moving back and forth was too difficult.
"When we go and visit, and everybody wants you back there, it starts to feel a little selfish, sometimes, to just, ‘Well, you know, we’re going to go back to Vermont and keep doing our music thing, and we’ll see you again next year.’ It just didn’t feel right this time."
(Bushlow) At the Cush’s final goodbye show a few weeks ago, people started to chant "Please don’t go, please don’t go" in between songs. Gabrielle held her hand over her heart and thanked the crowd, and Vermont, for everything they’ve given the band.
With a new CD, Between the Leaves, out this month, the Douglas’s leave Vermont and leave behind a dedicated crowd of friends and fans who are already waiting for the band’s next gig in the Green Mountain State.
For VPR, I’m Matt Bushlow.