Here in Williamsburg VA we just don’t see the variety of touring music groups that typically play the larger cities.
Ryan Shupe and the RubberBand had to invent their own genre in order to play the kind of music they want: PostHeeHawFunkadelicHipHop-NewGrass. If you come to hear Ryan Shupe this Friday at The Kimball Theater you will hear some country, some bluegrass, some rock and some whole lot more. Its hard to categorize them as any one genre.
Composed of Shupe, Craig Miner, Roger Archibald, Ryan Tilby and Nate Smeding, the group has been performing together for 14 years. "RubberBand is the perfect name," notes the description on their website. "The group is known for its ability to stretch out musically in all directions, pinging back and forth with a joyful spontaneity most bands could barely imagine let alone achieve."
They have always been more of a show band than a radio band, says Shupe. "Our fans come to our shows to have a good time. They are less concerned about whether they’ve heard our hits on the radio."
Their sound was "born out of necessity," Shupe says. "When we first started out, nobody had heard of us, so we looked for songs that would catch people’s attention. We do songs that you have to listen to the lyrics to pick up the nuances of humor."
There have been radio hits; a single called "Dream Big," from an album released by Capitol Records. It came close to Billboard’s Top 20 .
All the band members grew up in musical families. Shupe is the fifth-generation violin player in his family; Archibald’s mother played the accordion; Miner’s father played the bass. They all started performing before the age of 10. "Collectively, we have a combined 121 years of experience," says Miner. "That’s a lot of rocking." But they can’t think of anything else they’d rather do. "It’s an addiction," says Archibald.
Having fun, making music, connecting with fans, that’s what it’s all about for Ryan Shupe and the RubberBand.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Kimball Theatre Williamsburg VA
Filed under: Concerts, Entertainment, williamsburg va |
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