Shiner Rising Star, KHYI, 2012 Rd 1 Wk 6, Aug. 30

One thing that all three bands had in common who played Shiner Rising Star’s Round 1 Week 6 session was that they came to have fun. Of course, each played to earn the chance to move on into Round Two. When the announcement was made Friday morning, it was The Bigsbys who are moving on.

Shiner Rising Star is hosted and produced by Dallas radio station KHYI (95.3), Shiner Beer, and Shiner Records. It offers a recording contract to the band who takes top honor after beating out 23 other bands, selected from hundreds others who apply each year, in three rounds. Previous winners, such as Darryl Lee Rush and Somebody’s Darling, along with one member of the KHYI team, and leaders in the Texas Music scene, are judges.

Week 6 was held at City Tavern in downtown Dallas, a quaint bar with a history not quite as old as Dallas itself, but which added to the city’s legacy during the past 50-ish years.  Thursday, Aug. 30, brought together The Bigsbys, Stone Rosevelt, and American Jenny.

American Jenny — Based in Dallas, this band had to put in the least miles for this round, and they brought a large fan bass with them to City Tavern.  Blues mixed its heavy hand in with their rock n roll style, and throughout it all, the band had fun!

Josh Hammon lead with his soulful voice and does most of the writing for the band. Lead guitar duties belonged to David Frost, and Jake Boggess and Tim Smith provided a solid rhythm section with style.

American Jenny photos, click here

The Bigsbys

Coming from Palestine, Texas, for the contest, the Bigsbys are made up of Alex Smith on vocals and acoustic guitar, Russell McClendon on bass, Brad Hobson on lead guitar, and Nick Odom on drums.  This band has a CD out now, their debut, “True Story” featuring 10 songs written by Smith and produced by Lyndon Hughes. They are also on tour between now and their as-yet-undesignated Round Two date.

The Bigsbys photos, click here

This Paris-based band kept up the meaning of “”loving what you do” with their music. The band is not unfamiliar with playing original songs, as that makes up a good majority of their sets. Chad Farris and Chris Shoemate shined on vocals and guitar, complemented by the rhythm section of Ben Alsup on bass and Nick Burton on drums. Their music could have been called ‘rock,’ if one needs a musical style. And their various influences combined to create a unique sound to Stone Rosevelt.

Stone Rosevelt photos, click here

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