THE KNICKERBOCKER MUSIC CENTER

Saturday, June 1, 2019 at 8:30pm

The Knickerbocker Music Center. 35 Railroad Avenue, Westerly, RI 02891

knickmusic.com/events/2019/6/1/the-hoolios

Live Music

The Hoolios are steeped in the rhythms of the Gulf of Mexico: Americana, Latin, Reggae, Texas Folk and Zydeco. Veteran singer / keyboardist Mike Derry shares the vocals with a scathing R&B style that leaves the audience spellbound. Folk sensibility, Contemporary Themes, Gulf rhythms and serious musicians who cross traditional genres with jam band energy a la Donna the Buffalo to make music that is irresistible to dancers but equally compelling for those who listen with serious music appreciation in mind. Launched from the Gulf of Connecticut's roadhouses, the Hoolios have graced big stages from the respected Eugene O'Neil Theater Center to the Wolf Den at Mohegan Sun and the legendary Johnny Ds in Somerville, MA, and of course this return to Gulf of Connecticut's live roots capitol, the Knickerbocker Music Center.

About Chris Ross and the North

“I am a dangerous man / Born clutching to a dollar…”

…The words that open the new Chris Ross + The North record ‘Over Lonesome’ drip with whiskey and cigarettes, followed by a clamor of guitars evoking a band of outlaws on the run.

Ross spent the better part of a decade tucked away on the coast of Maine developing his voice as a writer. Inside the arsenal of tracks he’s penned, one finds dangerous, hard-hitting reflections; stories of love, life and longing, appealing because they’re so real. Tinted with an appetite for self-destruction, his writing style is smooth and eloquent while remaining sincere to genuine grit of experience. When his sonorous vocals found affinity with a band, the evolution cultivated a multifaceted, visceral experience for listeners, an auditory landscape much like that of Maine itself: Humble yet dramatic, severe yet sweet, cold and resonant with a nearby fire throwing heat.

The musicians forming The North provide a masterful blend of country + rock & roll swagger, a winning combination with Ross’s candid storytelling. Anchored by Ryan Curless (drums) and Caleb Sweet (bass), the rhythm section hits where you want it to, and hard – a fine tuned compatibility of artistic bonds reaching back to early childhood perceptible to the naked ear. Rounding out The North is guitarist Zachary Bence, a virtuoso with the ability to transition between ear-scorching guitar solos and beautiful sonic swells on the drop of a dime, his grace as a musician as boundless as his contribution to the band’s steady concord.

Show: 8:30p | Doors: 7:30p

Tickets: $12 Cover ($2 Service Charge Included With Online Tickets. All sales are final, no ticket refunds or exchanges.)