“Just when I thought we should give it up, the tide started to turn and we quit our jobs and never looked backed,” explained DeVotchKa vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Nick Urata about his band’s slow rise. “It was such a struggle; we were so broke and had no label, but it was a mission. I had to get these songs out of me.”

Known for using a bevy of uncommon instruments such as the bouzouki, theremin, sousaphone and accordion, the Denver-based DeVotchKa formed in 1997 as a backing band for burlesque shows. The band has since developed an eclectic style of pop music that fuses everything from Mariachi music to Greek, Bolero and folk. After four self-released albums, Urata and his band mates —Tom Hagerman, Jeanie Schroder and Shawn King — finally got their big break when they were asked to provide the majority of the music for two popular indie films: Little Miss Sunshine and Everything is Illuminated.

Signed to Anti-records in 2007, DeVotchKa recently released their major label debut, A Mad and Faithful Telling.

“I can’t predict where any of this will go, but having an arsenal of great musicians is a once in a lifetime kind of circumstance,” Urata said. “I’m not sure if this tour is ever going to end, but if it does I would like to be a shepherd for a while. Just tend to my flock.”

Opening for DeVotchKa’s first ever Indiana show is Ontario-based singer/songwriter Basia Bulat, who is currently on the road supporting her debut album, Oh, My Darling. “[DeVotchKa] is just like us in that they play a bunch of weird instruments,” Bulat told NUVO. “They heard our album and asked us to open for them; we’re already learning a lot from watching them play.”