Bonfire Dub performs in Beaver Creek Saturday

The last time musician Bridget Law took the stage at the Vilar Performing Arts Center in Beaver Creek, back in April, acrobats on trapeze performed as she and members of her band Elephant Revival played. That’s just one of the reasons why she’s told journalists from around the country that the Vilar Performing Arts Center is her favorite venue, she said.

Why else is it No. 1?

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“Just the sound and the crew and the environment, and the fact that they made it so easy when I wanted to bring a circus act in,” Law said during an interview this week.

When she takes the stage with her fiddle tonight, along with the members of her other band, Bonfire Dub, the circus act will not be there, but Law’s considerable enthusiasm and fiddle-strumming prowess certainly will, along with a hefty dose of Bonfire Dub’s folk and reggae-tinged rock music.

“I’m really looking forward to playing this show with Bonfire (Dub) there on Saturday,” she said.

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“I’m really looking forward to playing this show with Bonfire (Dub) there on Saturday,” she said.

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The show is the kickoff party to the Underground Sound concert series at the Vilar Center, which officially starts Sept. 29 with von Grey, an all-sisters quartet, and continues Sunday evenings in October and November. The show is free for people who have bought Underground Sound series passes, and $10 at the door if you don’t have the pass.

For Law, music series like Underground Sound, which give new musicians a chance to shine, are extremely important.

“It’s imperative in the music industry right now,” Law said. “Everyone is thirsty for new music, but not always fully aware of how to find that. I’m stoked on this series; I’m happy we can be the kick-off party.”

‘No one without the other’

Scotty Stoughton, the frontman and lead singer for Bonfire Dub, expects the show to draw a different crowd than your typical concert might.

“We’re excited for the opportunity to play music for people who are truly coming to listen and participate in the art,” he said. “We have been very lucky to perform lately at festivals and events promoting a conscious platform and space. This leads to a deeper connection to the music and the right interchange between fans and musicians. We don’t feel there is any difference between those attending a show and those performing it, there is no one without the other and the true magic happens when the all are gathered in a unique and mind blowing space.”

Recently the band performed at Campout for the Cause and the Arise Festival in Loveland in mid-August. Stoughton called the two shows “highlights” among a full summer performance schedule.

If you’ve been around long enough, you might remember a band Stoughton and Bonfire bandmate Rodney James Coquia used to play in: Sucker, which played from 1996 to 2002 in Eagle County and beyond. In fact, Bonfire Dub will play an old Sucker tune at the show tonight. Called “Anymore,” it’s one of the first songs that Stoughton and Coquia wrote together.

“It’s nostalgic to perform old tunes and really something I’d like to further incorporate,” Stoughton said. “It is a great way to stay connected to your past and use it to inspire current and future works,” Stoughton continued, referencing a Bob Marley quote: “In this great future, you can’t forget your past.”

‘Soar really high’

In the past 3 or 4 years since Law first performed with Bonfire Dub, she’s progressed from guest status to being a full fledged member, Stoughton said.

“She is a special guest on our first release and contributes 100 percent to the latest release [the new EP ‘Who We Are’], plus appears live with us on most dates,” Stoughton said. “Besides her incredible talent and showmanship, Bridget brings a level of social and environmental awareness and attention which flows through out. We share the feeling that with performance brings an obligation to spread a message of love and gratitude.”

Law says her time with Bonfire Dub is “good for her musicianship.”

“It’s healthy and fun, and gives me another outlet of expression and I like that,” Law said.

So how is it different from being on stage with Elephant Revival?

“Well there’s a drum set for one, and for my ears sake, I’m glad I play in a band that doesn’t have drums,” Law said, laughing. “But it’s so fun and works really well with the fiddle. The fiddle has this ability to soar and when there’s drums, it can soar really high. And I’ve been lucky to dip into this female vocal support role more. I do sing with (Elephant Revival) but I’m usually the third or second female part, so it’s been good for me to sing more.”

There are similarities between the two bands, as well, Law said, which is what drew her to Bonfire Dub in the first place.

“It’s similar in that the meaning of the music is positive and meant to uplift and inspire; that’s my requirement for the music I play, that it has a message,” Law said.

High Life Editor Caramie Schnell can be reached at cschnell@vaildaily.com or 970-748-2984.