Fun with The Ruby Suns

In true 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon form, The Ruby Suns and I are connected by only 2 degrees. My great pal Claire is high school friends with the tour manager of The Ruby Suns. It took just a few emails to get connected with front man Ryan McPhun & strike up a conversation. Ryan is Californian born and bred until he decided to follow his travelling soul across the globe to Auckland, New Zealand where he formed Ryan McPhun & The Ruby Suns. The band has gone through a few iterations up until it's current state. I met up with the band at one of my favorite San Francisco venues, Bottom of the Hill. We all piled onto a small couch in the green room and chatted for about 20 minutes. Most of it was complete and utter nonsense, which certainly made for an interesting editing process. In the end, the video turned out wonderfully. This is yet another highly recommended show. All the guys are up-beat, whimsical in output, yet serious in craft.

Outasight so outta sight

Outasight and I met up at the LRG party in South by Southwest 2010. Outasight packs a killer show- he is classified as hip-hop but he encompasses so many genres. His beats are strong, lyrics are poetic and his melodies are thick and ruddy. Classic rock & 50's big band remnants find their way into his songs, making each one a complex treat.

Outasight, born Richard Andrews, gave our audience some words of wisdom for making it in the music world as well gave some insight into what SXSW offers.

Going home with Kelley James

While working the LRG party at SXSW 2010, I got to meet and interview a ton of incredible artists. We had a few minutes to chat before each interview making it difficult to really get to know a person or latch on to one's personality. This was not the case with Kelley James. He was personable and captivating right from the very beginning. His presence immediately pulls you in and makes you feel comfortable, I instantly felt like I was having a reunion with a long lost pal.

Not only is he a charming individual, he is impeccably talented. His music filled the room and halted everyone in attendance.

Up there, soaking up light

My performances are too far and few between, but when they happen they delight me to no end. I performed at a benefit for FACT/SF, a San Francisco based dance company. I played two of my most recent songs, Come Around and What I Need, as well as a cover (with Paul Gilliham) of Ray Lamontagne's You Are The Best Thing Everyone seemed to love it, already I am itching to have another go. Let's hope I don't wait so long in between performing next time.

Fly Gypsy. Mormon Cowboy.

I reserve the right to change my mind, but this could be--hands down--the best interview I did at SXSW. Fly Gypsy performed at LRG's party on St. Patricks day down at Aces on 6th Street in Austin. The part that you don't see, is this is actually the second time we filmed this interview because I pulled a rookie move and forgot to turn the microphone on. Fly Gypsy were such dolls about it. They kept their energy up, laughed with me and chatted, once again, about their time on stage.

Fly Gypsy has a #1 freestyle out of 132 on DJBooth.net and their single 2 Step reached No. 1 spot on college hip-hop charts.