The modern Americana “supergroup” Middle Brother made a stealth appearance during Deer Tick’s performance at Newport, RI’s Newport Blues on Saturday night. A late night show tied to the nearby Newport Folk Festival, the gig was billed with Deer Tick & Friends with guest openers Jonny Corndawg, Sharon Van Etten and Matt Vasquez (of Delta Spirit).

After Corndawg and Van Etten’s sets, Deer Tick frontman John J. McCauley, Dawes leader Taylor Goldsmith and Delta Spirit singer/guitarist Matt Vasquez took the stage for a stealth four-song Middle Brother mini-set with Dawes’ Griffin Goldsmith on drums (Taylor’s younger brother who appears on the Middle Brother album.) During their last number “Middle Brother,” the song’s co-author Jonny Corndawg returned to the stage to supply some additional vocals and onstage antics.

As Corndawg and the Goldsmith brothers left the stage, the rest of Deer Tick emerged to back Vasquez for his previously announced set. Their short performance consisted of covers of Nirvana’s “Negative Creep” and “Scentless Apprentice.” (For a few years, the members of Deer Tick performed as a Nirvana cover group on occasion.) Deer Tick then closed the night with an extended set and encore.