Thank you all so much for coming out to our live recording Saturday! Here is a REEEEAALLY rough mix of the first song, just for fun. Just Me Live Rough Mix


The Crowd before the show. You guys made it happen!

Last Saturday night I sat in the Mean Bean Caffeine Lounge in Delaware, Ohio and thought about how lucky I was. Here I was sipping on a java listening to this incredible original music, watching these talented players and the thought runs through my head. "You know what? These people are my friends."

Gina "Rie" Lewis started off the evening with her exceptional vocal ability. Showcasing it perfectly as she delivered beautiful songs, full of pain and joy and hope. The bluesy "Real Roses Only Please" was, for my taste, the best vocal I have heard from her as she delved into the grittier parts of her palate.

Jeff Dernlan was next up and, as usual, delivered the kind of performance that had me sitting there thinking, "how am I supposed to follow this?" He played several cuts from his new (unreleased) record Cobblestone and even took a request for the weighty "World of Sin" delivering it in a way that left people hanging on every lyric.

Fortunately for me, I took the stage with the back-up of Mike Jackson and Keith Flint. Both of whom dove into the songs with a fervor adding nuances and layers that really brought the tunes to life.

I couldn't help but feel a surge of pride as I looked around the room that night. My friends, talented, thoughtful, amazing people these are the kind of people I consider friends.

Here was a review that was emailed to me:

What (we) loved about last night is that the music was central…we could concentrate on the music and enjoy the messages and stories. For us children of the 70s it was a throw back to the hippie coffee shop era where the music and story was central. Great experience. Love your passion and the addition of Jackson on electric. I met Gina and chatted … she's very nice. You have some great friends.

Last Friday afternoon Jeff Dernlan, Keith Flint and I all felt a certain sense of doom as we drove out to perform at the "First Friday" festival in Urbana, Ohio. Playing outside is always a little tough and this event takes place right on the square in downtown Urbana, mere feet from the semi-trailers that charge through the heart of this quaint little village. But we agreed to do it. We agreed to be the main entertainment for a fun filled evening as Urbana residents milled about tasting the best chili the area has to offer.

You know, its always the same when it comes to these situations. Months ago someone says, "Hey, do you want to play this little festival? And of course, at that time, it seemed like great fun. "Sure, that sounds great" you say!

But Friday, as we faced the reality that we were going to be standing 6 feet from the curb at the busiest intersection in Champaign county pouring out our most contemplative lyrics, all of the sudden it just sounded a lot less like a good time.

Upon arrival it seemed that maybe things were going to be worse than we thought. The DJ was cranking out all of the wedding reception type music you could think of. Songs like "Pump Up The Jam" and "Wild Thing" (the Tone-Loc version.)

Oh boy... This is gonna hurt...

I would go into all of the embarrassing details of how some rednecks threw beer bottles at us, spitting in our general direction as their girlfriends beat us to a pulp. I am happy to report, however, than this was far from the case.

Far from a bad experience, the evening turned out to be a real blast. A couple hundred people milled about the down-town area eating their chili and even smiling in our general direction. The only rednecks turned out to be my own relatives and everyone at the event seemed to have a genuinely good experience! The DJ was actually a great sound-man, delivering a solid signal that managed to fill the entire downtown area and even drown out the occasional fire engine!

Jeff Dernlan gave his normal sterling performance and even took on some duties as ring leader of some impromptu dancing!



All in all the night turned out great! We got to try out some chili and the best part of the night turned out to be the "after party." My Uncle Ray and Aunt Debbie live about 3 miles outside of Urbana in just about the coolest country house you can imagine. We all headed out to this little slice of heaven and spent the rest of the night laughing and telling stories on their covered porch as the rain moved in and cooled the evening. In the end it could not have been a better way to spend a Friday night.

Keith Flint and Mike Jackson gutted it out with me at a tough performance last night. I don't know why I said "yes" to this gig, but playing with them turned it into something worth doing.





There was a little bit of fun along the way. Notice the kid behind me. I guess he was helping set-up for the band that was following us?



Rehearsing at my house before the show. Notice the kid in the background, the theme of the night. OK actually that is my kid and she is awesome!

The back story

A few months back Joe Becker asked me to play an event called Power Surge. As you might know I have been busy procrastinating on recording my record due by the end of the year, so I haven't been playing out, so when Joe asked it seemed like a good idea to say "yes" because that would force me to get some material together. Of course, the closer the event got the worse the idea seemed. The more publicity I saw about the event, the more it seemed my music was a pretty bad fit. But like any good creative-type person, I knew the best thing I could do was just ignore it and maybe it would work itself out.

With about a week to go before the event I looked at the line-up of bands and saw that I was following a group called Hollow Point. Now if you hit this link you'll understand why this helped reinforce my feeling that just maybe this whole deal was a bad idea. A teen expo. A metal band ahead of me. An outdoor stage at the fair grounds. And what about this made me say "yes?"

Despite my trepidation, I had committed, my name was on the poster. I couldn't get out of the deal, so I decided to go take my licks. But fortunately for me, I didn't have to do it alone. Now, I was the genius that got myself into this mess but like firefighters Mike Jackson and Keith Flint walked into the burning building with me. And honestly, spending the evening with these guys made this whole experience worthwhile.

Mike Jackson played guitar for me last night and for those of you that don't know, he is a musical genius and all around great dude. He has been around the music scene here in central Ohio for years and chances are if you are into music and live in Columbus, you know who he is. But you might not know that he is a brilliant composer and can pretty much make a tune come out of anything he picks up.

Keith Flint covered percussion. Keith is my multi-talented friend that I admire for his continuing quest to push creative boundaries. A talented writer, musician and teacher, Keith has been playing out around Columbus with some really amazing musicians so I really appreciate it when he comes out to back me up.

But as good as these guys are as players, they are even better as human beings and that is what I appreciate the most.

My wife and girls came to the gig and the whole evening ended up turning into a chance to be with these two good friends, my family and make a little music along the way.

Brad Knull is a singer/songwriter and guitarist with roots in the tradition of Bob Dylan, Townes Van Zandt, Neil Young and Leonard Cohen. His contemplative songs grapple with spirituality, birth, death and relationships. His provocative lyrics are supported by a musical style that borrows heavily from the Americana singer/songwriter tradition and yet infuses it with a decidedly modern sensibility. The sound could be described as spare, but that might undersell the weight of the lyrics, which Brad delivers with an emotive and seasoned voice.