When the improbable success of Mumford & Sons put the spotlight on scruffy youngsters toting banjos and mandolins, this Duluth, Minnesota, crew was one of the bands peeking back out from the shadows. Trampled by Turtles started in 2004 out of pure necessity: After his previous band’s equipment was stolen, singer Dave Simonett figured a group that didn’t need amplifiers would be less of a target. Now TBT are seasoned regulars on the bluegrass-festival circuit and released their sixth collection of breakdowns and ballads, Stars and Satellites, earlier this year.
This article appears in Oct 11-17, 2012.
