The penultimate performance for this year’s Levitt AMP Middlesboro Music Series will offer a different sound from the country and bluegrass offerings of past performances.

This week’s headliner is The Bloody Tinth, a rock band with traditional Irish instrumentation.

The band’s name comes directly from the pages of history, and is entwined with American and Irish significance.

According to their official website, the band got its name from a predominantly Irish infantry unit that fought in the Civil War. The official title of the unit was The Ohio 10th Volunteer Infantry, which was made up of Irish immigrant men and formed in Cincinnati in 1861.

It is suggested that the unit got its nickname of “The Bloody Tinth” (Tinth is how tenth sounds in an Irish brogue) from their volatile behavior on and off the battlefield.

While in basic training, it is said that the 10th’s Irish would consistently get into bloody fisticuffs with the German companies at Fort Dennison.

Between the years of 1861 and 1864, the regiment lost over 100 men in battle.

It is this history where brother and sister duo Michael Sams and Rachel Schott got the idea to start a rock band with genuine Irish influence during a night at the local bar in 2008.

Ever since that night, the band has been going strong with their own brand of rock music with heavy Celtic influence.

Dana Greene, Levitt AMP Middlesboro MC stated, “The Bloody Tinth fuse an American rock band approach with traditional Irish music to create a unique vibe that inspires a festive atmosphere at each of their shows.”

Opening for The Bloody Tinth are the Harlan natives, The Kudzu Killers. Having been a band in one form or another since 2004, The Kudzu Killers have a wide range of musical influences that have infused their indie folk/Americana and bluegrass sound.

The fun begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Levitt stage in Downtown Middlesboro.

For more information on The Bloody Tinth visit their official website at https://www.thebloodytinth.com/home

For more information on The Kudzu Killers visit them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/KudzuKillers/