Do you know what this means, folks? The light at the end of the flippin’ tunnel. The NX35 administration and volunteers will see the fruits of their labor, I will have to find something else to blog about and, of course, best of all, over 200 bands will play for people that love music. Short intro today, folks, so you can get back to preparing for next week’s awesomeness. And… go!
photo credit: www.billellison.com
RTB2
I don’t have many regrets in life. But having lived in Denton for about five months now without hitting up an RTB2 show? Inexcusable. The first time I heard of Ryan Thomas Becker, I was at a show at The Schoolhouse and a friend told me I shouldn’t miss his set. I was there but for some unknown reason, I missed it. And I’ve managed to do so for five freaking months. The same friend told me I should definitely go to an RTB2 show, and I haven’t. No good excuses for missing any of his many, many shows as he is in two other bands (Eaton Lake Tonics, The Slow Burners) in addition to his solo project and RTB2. His dedication to music far, far outweighs mine to say the least as he manages to juggle a day job along with all of his bands. Does he sleep?
It has been said that Ryan Thomas Becker is the “best guitarist in Denton.” That’s a mighty large claim to make but from the recordings I’ve heard, I will not argue with that declaration. Combined with Grady Don Sandlin on drums (another musician that someone recently told me was the best in town), RTB2 is definitely a bluesy-rock force to be reckoned with. Although I’ve managed to miss every RTB2 show, there was a good solid month where I played the DOMA XXI compilation disc in my car, giving extra play to “When Hammer Hits Stone.” No lie. And yesterday, the video for the song was unleashed. It accentuates the pure badassery of the song well. (And I’m not the first one to use the word “badassery” to describe this video.)
RTB2 – “When Hammer Hits Stone” Super 8mm from Andy LaViolette on Vimeo.
I swear one day I will experience this live. You can, too, if you start the festival off at Dan’s next Thursday night.
edit: Also, RTB2 is releasing a live album next week called In People which covers their set from last year’s NX35. Don’t say I didn’t warn you to bring some extra cash!
Notable tunes to preview online: “When Hammer Hits Stone”, “Wire to the Walls” / Myspace / Facebook
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