Ryan recommends:

Blackstone Rngrs

Psychedelic. Ethereal. Rock. Moody. Groovy. All these adjectives describe this three piece from Dallas, TX who I caught live with little knowledge about a couple of weeks ago. They prefer to perform in relative darkness – they actually requested the lights in the already not-exactly-well-lit Ace of Cups stage area get turned down. While echoey female vocals in bands might be trendy these days, Blackstone Rngrs add a new twist. Their huge sound is done organically. No back tracks here (at least from what I could tell).

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James and the Drifters

I first heard of this group when friend of Tuned Up Ethan Kattau began a short-lived gig with this group after the break up of Slospeak Records alt-rock group SONS. It would be easy to just lump in this group under “folk rock” or “Americana influenced rock” and call it a day. Admittedly, there isn’t a lot on paper that I can write to really make this group stand out – excepting that they do their sound well. I sadly missed their set in Columbus (last night! Argh!) but I can imagine that they worked the room to their advantage. This gig prompted me to check out the band, and I’m pleased to say that my suspicions about their talent level were correct.

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