The Flood Brothers & Rose Ridge
THE FLOOD BROTHERS
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The Flood Brothers are a THUMP MACHINE whose infectious melodies and animal rhythms will have your bones shakin’ outta your boots! Heavily influenced by the early Rock ‘N’ Roll sounds of Memphis and Deep Blues of North Mississippi, Gabe Meyer with Colin and Jacob Best add their own bend to the boogie that could only come from the muddy banks of the mighty Mississippi River. Hannibal, MO is where these boys and their music call home.
Forming in a basement in early 2000, The Flood Bros. cut their teeth a few years later as the unofficial house band at The Packer’s Roost; a rowdy dive bar in rural off-the-grid Montana near Hungry Horse.
“Our first gig was actually in Wapiti, Wyoming in 2002. We used a mop, bucket, and duct tape for a mic stand, played for five hours and hadn’t practiced in three months,” says Meyer. “We nailed it.”
Best adds, “Our first gig at Packer’s was on Christmas Day. We showed up at about 6:00 that evening after working all day on the mountain, walked in with our gear, Gabe’s wearing shorts, and these people are smashed wasted throwing every insult short of a beer bottle. All we could do was yell and holler back, set up and play. We felt instantly at home. Everyone in Whitefish warned us not to go out there. Too rough. We played through lots of fights, knives, and EMT’s…..we were paid in duck, goose, and mashed potatoes.”
After returning home, the guys started a band with Kent Burnside, the oldest grandson of the legendary R.L. BURNSIDE, as Kent Burnside and the New Generation. Son of R.L., Dan Burnside joined on bass, Best was on drums and Meyer on lap steel guitar. With R.L. Burnside being a musical hero, Gabe and Jake already knew most of the music by heart and within three weeks were on a major West Coast tour. During the years of 2006-2010, the band played regularly at many notable venues nationwide such as Legends, Chicago, Ill; Ground Zero, Clarksdale, MS; The Knitting Factory, Hollywood, CA; Gip’s Place in Bessemer, AL (Alabama’s last remaining Juke Joint, on the blues circuit for over 50 years – a must visit venue), and the House of Blues in Chicago. Gabe and Jake also had the chance to share the stage and play alongside many standout musicians with the Burnsides: Buddy Guy, Bobby Rush, Kenny Brown, Duwayne Burnside, Cedric Burnside, Garry Burnside, the sons of Junior Kimbrough, and the daughter of Johnny Shines to name(drop) a few. “My guitar’s more famous than I’ll ever be,” says Meyer. “Elmo Williams played it up in Minneapolis.” “Kenny Brown played it later that night at a bar down the road and then we all got kicked out.” “It’s been stolen, pawned, and bled on.” “She always comes home and never talks back.”
Meyer and Best rotated a bit, playing around down South with whichever of the Burnsides needed a solid drummer and rhythm and slide guitar player. “None of those guys really played slide. The generation after R.L. seemed to have lost interest in it, and finding a drummer who could play those Hill Country beats wasn’t easy either. Jake and I were in high demand there for awhile.” While crediting the Burnsides for musical inspiration and some long years of paying hard dues on the road, the boys had to follow their number one priority of playing original music as a two man band.
Promoting their long-awaited debut album, “Flood Type,” the Flood Brothers are back on track playing solely as a duo and are known for their energetic live performances that can promote hours and hours of groove.
“Shake it if you got it…”
ROSE RIDGE
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A Wisconsin boy and Mississippi girl, Rose Ridge refers to their collaboration as running with scissors, making and faking their favorite tunes. Tracy started picking at age five, returning to the stage in 2012 after 25 years away from public performances. Jenny loves live music. Performing classical works since childhood, obtaining a degree in Music Theory & Composition, having played in a couple of local projects, decided opening a music venue in the Capital City would be a great idea. With Tracy’s encouragement, returning to the stage has been a dream fulfilled. Whether performing their own creations or putting their spin on another’s song, playing in front of folks continues to fuel the fire. Doing what ya love with somebody ya love is as good as it gets.
Paul Laemmli joined Rose Ridge in 2015. Raised throughout Mid-Missouri, Paul grew up swimming in the deep end of a family of musicians. Paul honed his craft around the wood stove at the family cabin, in churches, and in the blues clubs of Kansas City and Springfield, MO. While playing all over the great state of Missouri, he earned a music degree and continues to earn a reputation for connecting people with story songs and skillful guitar work. Heavily influenced by the Springfield Sound and the blues scene in Kansas City, Paul currently resides near his grandparent’s home in Jefferson City, Missouri where you can find him playing his red Fender Stratocaster wherever people gather to share life, love, and music.
Rose Ridge – California (cover)
