BALTIMORE (OSV News) — Maryland native and Dominican Father Justin Bolger was hoping to hear some “whooping and hollering” July 29 when he and his band, The Hillbilly Thomists, performed at Sts. Philip and James, a Baltimore parish served by members of his religious order.
And the crowd did not disappoint, according to a video clip posted July 30 to the band’s social media of its members playing “Holy Ghost Power” on stage in the parish’s social hall, with band member Father Thomas Joseph White, rector of the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome, at the microphone.
The July 29 stop was the fifth stop on a 10-city tour the bluegrass and folk band, made up entirely of Dominican friars, launched July 24. The 2026 Strange Land Tour is scheduled to end Aug. 8 — the feast of St. Dominic — in Nashville for Dominican Fest at the Dominican Campus, home to three schools run by the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia.
The tour celebrates the band’s sixth album, “Strange Land,” with 10 new songs that hit streaming platforms July 28.
Bluegrass, folk, gospel
The tour’s first stops included venues in Providence, Rhode Island, and New York City, with a private event in Bear, Delaware. The band was also scheduled to play July 30 at The Catholic University of America’s Hartke Theater, followed by the Kingfisher Folk Festival in Asheville, North Carolina, Aug. 1; The Center for Evangelical Catholicism in Greenville, South Carolina, Aug. 3; the Capitol Theatre in Macon, Georgia, Aug. 4; and The Lyric Theatre in Birmingham, Alabama, Aug. 6.
The band performs a mixture of bluegrass, folk, gospel and original songs composed by the Dominican friars. It was founded by members of the Dominican Province of St. Joseph, which encompasses the northeast United States and is one of four Dominican provinces in the U.S.
“We often receive messages and testimonies from folks who have been inspired by our music,” Father Bolger told the Catholic Review, the news outlet for the Archdiocese of Baltimore, in an email ahead of the Baltimore show. “I would also say the music we play seems to resonate with families. I think kids enjoy the quirky nature of the tunes and parents enjoy some of the deeper themes.”
The band released its debut, eponymous album in 2017. It has since released four other albums: “Living for the Other Side” (2021), “Holy Ghost Power” (2022), “Marigold” (2024) and “Carols” (2025).
‘Good times down there in Baltimore town’
The July 29 concert marked the first time The Hillbilly Thomists performed in Baltimore. Among their featured songs was expected to be “New City,” which opens with the lyrics “I had some good times down there in Baltimore town” before later alluding to Los Angeles, Nashville and Washington, as well as the Heavenly Jerusalem.
Father Justin Bolger said he was looking forward to a “fun homecoming” as family in the Baltimore area includes his brother Father Jesse Bolger, a priest of the Baltimore archdiocese.
“I come from a big musical family. I played in bands in Frederick and in Baltimore during high school and college,” Father Justin Bolger said. He and his sister had a record deal and toured the country before he entered the Dominicans at age 32.
‘God is providently at work’
Father Bolger serves as chaplain for the Catholic community at Brown University and Rhode Island School of Design. He lives in the Dominican priory on the campus of Providence College.
“I’ve been very blessed as a Dominican friar especially with this musical ministry,” Father Bolger said of his side gig with the band.
“One of the songs I wrote is called ‘Good Tree,’ and borrows and combines various scriptural references to trees,” Father Bolger wrote. “Other songs we write are more about human life, its difficulties and even tragedies, and how God is providently at work guiding us through even the lows of life.”
Katie V. Jones writes for the Catholic Review, the news outlet for the Archdiocese of Baltimore. OSV News contributed to this story. This article was published in Catholic Review and distributed in partnership with OSV News.
