Take a 15-time IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) Dobro Player of the Year and a Tennessee-born guitar prodigy who made his Grand Ole Opry debut at the age of 11, and you have Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley, a powerhouse acoustic duo that has electrified the acoustic music scene.

On their new Compass Records album, World Full of Blues, they move beyond the acoustic-centric sound of their previous two releases (including the GRAMMY-nominated Before the Sun Goes Down) and juice things up with Hammond B3 and a horn section. Guests include Blues great Taj Mahal, who provides his unmistakable mojo to the title track, and country music legend Vince Gill, who joins the duo on an inspired rendition of The Grateful Dead’s moonshiner song, “Brown-Eyed Women.”

White-hot picking and stone country vocals are still the driving force of the duo, but now with added grit and a nod to the rootsier side of Americana, all aided by the guiding hand of GRAMMY winning producer Brent Maher. Maher, known for his production and engineering of such diverse artists as The Judds, Faces, and Ike and Tina Turner, loved the duo’s demos and signed on to produce immediately upon hearing them.