Skygrass, the band formerly known as Blu Grass in the Sky, scored impressive marks for their performance at Redbones Blues Café on Friday, July 20, as they served up their signature blend of genres to a very appreciative crowd. During their entertaining set, the band succeeded in straddling the worlds of reggae, rock and dancehall with greater assuredness, embracing a certain degree of mellowness without sacrificing too much of their riff-induced edginess.

The band’s performance featured cameos from Ashley Martin, former singer with Byron Lee and the Dragonnaires, and Rootz Underground frontman Stephen Newell.

Skygrass lead vocalist Simon Samuel explained that the name change was a move to counter any assumption that the band is a bluegrass act, especially as they position themselves for the international market. Bluegrass is a sub-genre of country music that incorporates elements of jazz. According to Simon, the band plans to drop their debut album some time later this year.