Hey, look! Beloved N.E. Minnesota photographer and videographer Ron "Ranger Ron" Kutsi recently captured a couple numbers from two of my current bands.
My acoustic duo Horse Fzce just finished the recording phase of our first CD at amazing Sparta Sound in Sparta Minnesota, and those tracks now need to be sent off for mastering before being printed and packaged as a saleable product. As a “bonus track,” we thought it would be interesting to attempt one of the tunes as a 4 piece electric combo with bass and drums, and the fun and success of that collaboration spurred us on to perform the second half of our set at our local 218 Taphouse’s 2nd summer of 2019 street show in Virginia Minnesota as a full band. With our friends James Collins on drums and Tom Fricheck on bass, we presented six of our usual tunes in the new format, and the large crowd received the new act warmly. The tune “Butterfly” embedded in this post was the first song at our first ever public performance with this new line-up, and I still can’t get over how very fortunate we were to have Ron on the spot capturing the footage.
Because they’re always well attended and have such a positive vibe, local musicians clamber to get on the bill at these street shows, yet due to an unfortunate cancelation the day of the event and a last minute scramble for a replacement, my hard rockin’ band Souler accepted an invitation to fill in – and I was lucky enough to perform at two in a row. Heh heh...
Though a series of strong
thunderstorms pushed the festivities indoors, a nice sized crowd remained, and
once again our friend Ron stood by with his cameras and filmed the first ever
public presentation of James Collins’ new tune “In a Minute.” Our onstage sound situation was less than
ideal due to the lack of a sound check or monitors, and though we all had minor
issues with our personal performances, as a band we generally approved of the number. This video also captures my brand of poorly planned, "sloppy but passable" guitar solos at the "4 to 6 beer level." ;-)
