No BS! Brass

Ringing in 2011

2011-01-13T12:20:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! So after wrapping 2010 with great success, we're off to conquer 2011. Let's take a minute to discuss the end of last year. We had a great time seeing some old friends in New York when we played at Joe's Pub. There's a short video you can see here. New York is my favorite place in the world, and it was so awesome to bring some No BS! love to the Big Apple.

We also played back in town for our 2nd annual canned food and coat drive. I don't know the totals on how much everyone brought in, but I know Rand had a big car load to take to the organizations the next day. Great job RVA! We also went up to play a private show for the Joker's New Year's Association in Philadelphia. Words cannot explain the awesomeness that is the Mummers parade in Philly on New Years. We were part of a pre-party celebration, and all I can say is these people are the real deal! Check out this link for a bit of an explanation.

New Year's Eve was a great time in Petersburg at the Sycamore Rouge for a burlesque event. For those who are unfamiliar, the theater in Petersburg is a great non-profit facility that regularly hosts some amazing shows. Check it out if you haven't already.

And last but not least, we had a great review from PopMatters. I think they hit the nail on the head, saying our "insistence on approaching [our] collective as a rock band seems to have served [us] well." The review does a great job vocalizing what we were trying to capture when we put out the latest record. Speaking of "No BS!" we are close to the official vinyl release. Look for more information as we get details.

We'll see y'all at The Camel on Friday Jan. 21 for the first gig of 2011!

No BS! Plays Joe's Pup in NYC!

2010-11-23T22:03:00.000-08:00

That's right ladies and gentlemen, we're very much in an "Empire State of Mind." And on December 16, w're hitting the Big Apple. Ok, all Jay-Z references aside, we couldn't be more excited. Joe's Pub has hosted the likes of Elvis Costello, Alicia Keys, and Amy Winehouse, not to mention RVA's very own Fight the Big Bull. There isn't too much to say, other than if you live in New York, BE THERE! If you know people in New York, make sure they know to BE THERE! If you live in Richmond or anywhere else, BE THERE! We are so excited to have such an awesome gig in the heart of the country's music culture.

But that isn't the only part of the week. It seems like our activity comes in waves, and this time is no different. We play a variety show at the Jefferson Theater in Charlottesville on Dec. 15. Doing different types of gigs is always fun. We play a set of our own before taking part in various skits throughout the night. Look out SNL, here we come! Following up the show in NYC is a gig back in Richmond at The Camel. It will be the last show there for 2010, so we're looking for to sending out the year in style! The next night is Skaladays, a show at The Hat Factory put together by Richmond's Murphy's Kids. We are among 5 or 6 other bands that are there to play a kick-ass show in celebration of everyone's favorite month. We're really happy to be sharing a stage with such an awesome group of guys. The last thing is a private gig in Philly for Sunday. I'm told we're riding in a flat-bed truck and playing. Hmmmmm.

Well that's whats up on the schedule. Be looking out for some other cool stuff as well, including some Christmas tunes on the radio and a couple of (hopefully) great reviews in some very well-known publications. I'll be sure to keep everyone up-t0-date on that stuff. And don't forget to come dance off all of your Turkey calories with us on Saturday at The Camel to celebrate Thanksgiving!

Much Love,

Dillard and No BS! Brass

Sweet Press!

2010-10-27T09:39:00.000-07:00

The media blitz is on! We're really feeling the love from the press. I thought it would be cool to have a collection of it here. It all comes from an extremely diverse group of people, and it's in a bunch of different forms.

Perhaps my favorite of all the kind articles written is by Eric Benson, (creator of "Inverted Garden," which AllAboutJazz defines as "A New York jazz chronicle offering weekly previews and essays on the music's evolution in the digital age"), titled "Dance Music and the Joys of the No BS! Brass Band." The whole idea is that our music is a social beast; it should be enjoyed with friends. He makes some nice comments about the new record too, saying "It was well recorded and inventive—tight funk with an ear for subtle hip-hop..." Eric's article has been picked up by NPR, AllAboutJazz, as well as a few others.

A close second on my list of favorite press, is an audio segment that aired on WCVE a handful of times. Long-time host of the jazz segment, Peter Solomon put together a great piece that is a great description of who we are. Pay careful attention to Marcus's initial feelings on our cover tunes!

There were some other great reviews of the record release show, including this one from the Commonwealth Times

It's so exciting to be this well-received in the media. Having a friend call you to say he heard you on the radio or read about you online is a great feeling. We're heading to Gainesville for The Fest this weekend. I'll make sure to give an update on sunny Florida.

See y'all later!

Dillard and No BS! Brass

WOW!

2010-10-21T08:09:00.001-07:00

There are certain things in life that leave only a few words to express what really has happened. I think for the last 3 weeks, WOW might be one of the only words to describe all that has been going on. There's a lot of great stuff to talk about, so let's get talking.

First and foremost, our third album, "No BS!" debuted on Friday October 1 at a great show at The Camel. We always have a fantastic time playing there but I think that night was definitely one of my favorites. Everyone in the room shared in our excitement of the CD release. I'm told that we broke the attendance record for the club that night! Then Saturday night we did it all over again, this time playing a set at 8 for those who might not have been able to stay up late with us. The weekend was a huge success, and we really have Richmond and all of our fans to thank for that.

Continuing with the "Richmond-is-awesome" theme...

The Richmond Folk Festival was the following weekend. The RFF is always a great time, and I think it's one of RVA's best moments of the year. In fact, the banner at the Altria stage read, "Richmond at it's best." There was a lot to see and hear (and taste) as always. We were there to put the Richmond into the RFF. We played a set at noon on Saturday for a pretty packed house (well, tent) before leading a kazoo parade later that afternoon. Pace killed it a kazoo solo in "Moodring." Sunday (after yet another super awesome kazoo solo by Reggie) we had one more set to play. This time we drew in between 1,500 and 2,000 people. The energy that the crowd gave us that day was nothing I'd ever felt before. Here's a video from Saturday. THANKS EVERYONE!

We followed up that weekend with two more shows. Tuesday was VCU's Fall Brass Fest. Curt clearly had a great time playing with the lights while we were on stage. I now know what a rock star feels like when the lights go dark at the end of every tune. Thursday was a show at the ever classy Balliceaux. It was a relief to be able to play in the back room (the time before, there was no power and we had to pack into the front!).

So, that's what we've been doing this month. It's been an amazing ride so far. I'll be back later today with some links to some amazing press we've been getting as a result of the release of "No BS!" Stay tuned!

We love y'all,

-Dillard and No BS! Brass

NO BS! BRASS ALBUM COVER! by Nick Kuszyk!

2010-10-01T00:34:00.000-07:00

Let the Countdown Begin!

2010-09-25T08:25:00.000-07:00

As September comes to a close, let us take a quick look back on the last few months, before looking forward. May was great to us, we spent some time in Bryan's hometown, Birmingham Alabama. Our gig there was awesome, and we met a bunch of great people along the way. We've played in Asheville a couple of times now and it's always been a blast. Our monthly Camel gigs have been getting more and more successful, thanks to people like Jeb Bishop. We also started a monthly rotation at Balliceaux, rocking as hard as that place has ever rocked.

And now to the main event. We are less than one week away from releasing our self-titled record. To celebrate, we will be doing a 2 night party at our favorite place in RVA, The Camel. On Friday, we'll do our normal two sets, starting at around 10 PM. DJ Cool Paul will be spinning that night. On Saturday, we're mixing it up a bit. We'll do an early set at 8 PM, and then the normal sets at 10. DJ Harrison will spin, bringing that white-hot fire. Not to be outdone, we're releasing a double vinyl later in October.

I've never been so excited as I am for this. I hope everyone can make it out. Richmond has put its sweat into us, and now we're looking forward to putting our sweat back into Richmond. Come out y'all. Buy a CD. Buy a drink. Have fun. Dance. Party. Get down.

See y'all there,

Dillard and No BS! Brass

Jeb Bishop Trio

2010-09-08T10:03:00.000-07:00

We're super excited to be playing with the Jeb Bishop Trio from Chicago, this Friday night at The Camel. Our own Bryan Hooten talked Jeb about his thoughts on different aspects of trombone playing, among other things. RVAJazz has the original article can be found here. I've put in a selection of the article below.

BH: It seems to me that Trombone players are a pretty tight-knit group of cats that get along really well. Do you agree, and if so, why do you suppose that is?

JB: That does seem to be the case and maybe it is because the trombone has a little bit of an ‘underdog’ status … there’s not much chance of being a star (although Trombone Shorty seems to be figuring it out!), so the ego/competition thing doesn’t come into play so much, and we can just commisserate, drown our sorrows, talk about mouthpieces, etc.

Could you talk a little about this trio, its formation and the unique compositional/improvisational options inherent in the trombone, bass and drums combination?

With a trio you give up some orchestrational options, but what you gain is a lot of flexibility and mobility, and the chance for the music to have maximum spontaneity and to be reinvented in performance. In terms of timbre, the trombone/bass combination is one I have always enjoyed — I like playing duos with bass players — so that feels comfortable to me. And Frank and Jason are both wide open in terms of how they approach their instruments coloristically and in terms of the role the instrument can play in the band. That is important to me, because a big challenge of a trio is for it to not sound kind of the same all the time.

Like many young trombonists, you were on the path towards becoming an orchestral player. What happened?

I reached a point at which it seemed to me that to stay on that path felt too narrow. I was very young at the time and had I had more knowledge and insight I might have realized that I could also learn about and pursue other things while working on being a classical player, but at the time, and in the music school environment I was in, that did not seem like a realistic option. So I left music school, but began checking out other musical areas pretty much right away.

We also want to give a shout out to Richmond Magazine for naming us one of RVA's top 50 local players on the local music scene. Check out the article, with sweet quotes from Reggie Pace. Also, don't forget to follow No BS Brass, Dillard, Bryan, David, and Reggie on Twitter if you don't already. It's the easiest way to stay up-to-date on all the goings on of your favorite brass band!

Back to School Special!!

2010-08-21T16:11:00.000-07:00

HEY!!!

We've had such an amazing 3 days! Let's begin the story with some bad news. As the Meat Wagon is rolling down 64, heading west about 20 minutes out of town, DESTRUCTION occurred. The inner tire blew out traveling 70 MPH. It smashed against the floor, tearing a hole in it and nearly taking off Rob's foot. LUCKILY, a case of Miller High Life happened to be at the exact location of the incident, so instead of Rob, we only lost a few beers. 2 hours later, we were put back to normal and ready to go.

Go where you say? I'll tell you where. Camp Barefoot. A music festival in Bartow, WV, composed of lots of bands, Camp Barefoot is a beautiful spectacle for anyone who's ever been involved. We had a great time checking out other bands (shout out to Matt Walton and Former Champions as well as Murphy's Kids!) and enjoying the weather. Camping is a blast when you get to hang with some of your best friends. We will hopefully back next year, ready to take it to the next level.

Fast Forward to today. BEST FRIENDS DAY!!!! Everyone's favorite event at Hadad's Lake, BFD is always a crazy experience. This time we were put on a real stage, in front of tons of people. There is hardly a show where the audience gives us more energy than at BFD. From chants, to screaming, to crowd surfing (see the picture for evidence), we are always super excited for Best Friend's Day.

That's an update on this weekend. Don't forget we'll be at Balliceaux on Thursday and the record release show is Oct. 1&2 at The Camel!

Much love,

Dillard and No BS! Brass

It's August!

2010-08-02T19:24:00.000-07:00

Hey RVA (and world)!!

Hope everyone has survived July without melting, and that y'all's A/C units work a bit better than mine! It's time to get everyone updated on the goings on of your favorite brass band. To start off, I want to take another opportunity to make sure y'all know we've got a new record coming out on October 1! The tunes are recorded, and we're working on finalizing a track listing and sending it off to mastering and press. Don't forget to buy it on vinyl!

We just got back from a quick trip to Asheville, NC for a wedding hit, plus a gig at the super-cool Pisgah Brewing Company. If you go down there, get the Pale Ale! We had a great time sampling all the beer, playing an awesome show, and eating some fish tacos. We spent the night before hanging out with Grant Green Jr, Ike Stubblefield, and Yonrico Scott at a downtown Asheville spot, Mo Daddy's. Our last day was amazing for two reasons. First, we had a No BS Brass mini-golf tourney. Lance, David, and I were the first 3 finishers respectively. The second, is we might have set the record for spending at Taco Bell. Lance successfully navigated the Meat Wagon through the drive-thru at 2 AM, then we ordered 3 Bell Grande meals, plus an assortment of other stuff to the tune of $45. AMAZING!

Anyway, here's a rundown of the month to come:

We play at The Camel on August 13. Aaron Williams's band, High Noon opens up. Be there!

We are heading to Camp Barefoot for a couple shows both on our own, as well as playing with Murphy's Kids on the 19th and 20th.

We return to RVA for BEST FRIENDS DAY 9!!! Our favorite day of the year!!!!!!

August 26th is Balliceaux for a classy evening.

That's all for now folks.

We love you,

Dillard and No BS Brass

Gulf Give RVA

2010-07-14T09:05:00.000-07:00

We are very excited to be a part of one of the best causes in town this week. Gulf Give RVA is a fundraiser to benefit the Gulf Restoration Network. Money is coming both from donations which are collected at the door as a psuedo cover charge, as well as silent auction donations, which will be bid on throughout the night. The event starts at 4 PM with music from a variety of bands, with us taking the stage at 10 PM to finish off the night! We are very very excited to be part of these festivities, so everyone come out to Legend Brewing Company tomorrow!

AAANNNDDD don't forget, we rock out the Camel on Friday. Everyone be there too!

RVA Superlatives

2010-06-29T17:11:00.000-07:00

Hey y'all,

RVANews recently did a high school yearbook throwback, by putting together a list of RVA Class of 2010 Superlatives. Well guess who's up for most musically talented? That's right, your very own No BS! Brass is up against some of the best musicians in the city for the "Most Musically Talented" Award. There are some other good ones, including our friends Dean Christesen and Audrey Tilack are there for Cutest Couple. Make sure you all go vote for us, as well as your other favorite RVA folks.

That's not all that we've been doing lately. We're nearly finished recording our new, self-titled record to be released this fall. Be sure to stay tuned for info on the CD release show. We recently shared the stage at the Rock and Roll Hotel in DC with friends Bio Ritmo, as well as rocked it out in Columbia for their annual Festival for the Arts. Riding the success of the last show, we will be monthly gig for the summer at Balliceaux. It kicks off this Wednesday, the 30th. Be there!

-No BS! Brass

NO BS! Brass is glad to be home! WE are playin the Camel sat May 29th!

2010-05-28T09:41:00.000-07:00

SUP PEEPS!

Wow! What a great trip! We are so grateful for all of the people who helped us on this trip. Lucas, Claire, Kirk, the Hooten Family, Sky, the Bottletree, the Blind Tiger and the Rocket Club and all of our Asheville, Greensboro and Birmingham peeps!! and especially LANCE!!! (he drove the entire time!)

Our boy Lucas Fritz is doing a in-depth report on the tour soon for RVAJAZZ . So stay tuned for that.

....... RIGHT NOW....You can check out a sweet interview with one of our trombonists, Bryan Hooten on his homecoming to ole BAMA! (Roll Tide) on RVAJAZZ. Here's a clip from

http://rvanews.com/entertainment/jazz/hooten-goes-home-with-no-bs/28389

Hooten goes home (with No BS!)

by Dean Christesen

May 24, 2010

Bryan Hooten is going home, and he’s bringing one of his most popular bands with him. Not Ombak, or Fight the Big Bull, or even Verbatim. But it’s No BS! Brass who’s currently on their mini-tour of some southern states, and tomorrow they’re hitting Birmingham, Alabama, while they’re at it.

It’ll be the first time for any of his many bands to play in his home town, and he’s pretty excited.

Find the full article @ http://rvanews.com/jazz

ALSO!!! WE ARE PLAYING THE CAMEL MAY 29TH ( SATURDAY HOMECOMING SHOW!!)

ALL AGES! COME CELEBRATE WITH US!

Peace and Love,

Reggie Pace and NO BS! BRASS

Pics are by Claire Hooten....She's the best!

Let the Tour Commence!

2010-05-20T11:53:00.001-07:00

Exams are done. The sun is out. I've only got sunburned once. Summer. The No BS Brass Summer Kick-off Tour has begun! We started yesterday at Collegiate School for the first of 3 in-town shows that will be the beginning of our trip. We're playing a free show at Balliceaux tonight, and at Chalkley Elementary School tomorrow.

Then the real fun begins. We will pile in the newly acquired bus (nicknamed the "Meat Wagon") and start driving south. The first stop will be in Greensboro, NC to hit the Blind Tiger. We played there several months ago in front of a different, yet enthusiastic crowd. The next night will be in Asheville for the Rocket Club. The final stop will in the deep south, Birmingham AL, home of Bryan Hooten and the Bottletree where will make our pseudo-Gulf Coast debut.

We will continue the tour in Richmond, playing Gallery 5 on Friday and The Camel on Saturaday.

The trip is certain to be a mix of mother jokes, incinerations, fun, sleep, and a host of other things. Our boy Lucas Fritz is coming along for the ride. Make sure you all follow us on Twitter (@bryanhooten, @jdillardwatt, @nobsbrass) for live updates from the road!

Love you Richmond,

Dillard and No BS Brass

March Updates

2010-04-07T07:33:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!

The flowers are blooming, birds are chirping, and I'm sniffling all day and by looking at my eyes, I look stoned. You know what that means....it's SPRING! To celebrate, let's take a quick look back at the slew of activity from your favorite brass band towards the end of the month.

Most awesome turn of events this month: WE BOUGHT A BUS! That's right folks, No BS! is now ready to ride in style. Purchased from a church in Ashland, we're now rocking an 18 passenger bus, complete with a full-sized table, handcrafted by Lance's buddy, George. It's inaugural trip was this weekend, when we played a rockin' house show to cap off Slaughterama. Check out this quick video to catch a glimpse of the madness.

You might have caught word from this article on RVAJazz, but for those who do not know, we have started official work on our new record. We sought out to lay down the tracks that we have been road-testing for the last year. We are really excited about this new record, so excited that we've decided it's finally worthy of the important, "self-titled" status.

The last thing that happened this month, was a concert at Manchester High School. As part of Music in Our Schools month, we sought out to do our part to get kids, parents, teachers, and administrators excited about music in public schools. Almost every member of the band is a product of a high school and middle school band program. We were joined on the stage by the Manchester Jazz Ensemble to play the coolest version of "Iron Palm" to date.

Well I'm going to blow my nose and put some eye drops in my eyes. Until next time.

Peace and Love,
Dillard and No BS! Brass

No BS with Manchester High School

2010-03-20T17:08:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! We've had a lot going over the past two weeks. A lot of us have been traveling the country with the Univ. of Richmond basketball teams. After a tough loss to eventual Sweet 16 member, St. Mary's, we're back home for a while. Just want to shout out to everyone at UR, we had a fun season!

Looking forward, we're pumped about our next two upcoming gigs. The first is this Friday March 26 at the Camel. It's our monthly show, which is always a blast. We should be ready to debut a brand new tune or two, so be sure to check it out!

The next gig is a super unique one. We're playing a show at Manchester High School on March 31st, at 6:30 PM. We all really enjoy playing Richmond's next hot musicians, and this one will be no different. We're also going to be joined on stage by the MHS Jazz Ensemble and should be doing some other collaborations as well. This is an awesome opportunity to check out some great young musicians, as well as some of our favorite tunes, with a different setting! We're also having a donation drive of toiletries to our Armed Forces overseas. This is a show not to miss out on! Here's the Facebook event: LINK

Much love,

Dillard and No BS Brass

ps. Look for an exciting new post on a new asset we've recently acquired!

2010 Updates

2010-02-25T18:20:00.000-08:00

Well it's the end of February. The debates over "two-thousand ten" and "twenty-ten" have subsided. Everyone is watching the Winter Olympics, the only time curling gains worldwide attention. And although No BS! Brass is certainly taking interest, we've also been hard at work on some cool projects.

The first is Tim Barry's latest record, "28th and Stonewall" which was released in late January, features us on a couple of tracks. It was a blast to hang out with Tim this summer and play some New Orleans licks. If you haven't heard it yet, check it out!

We also took part in the WCVE Danny Boy project which sought to gather the unique versions of the traditional tune. We put together a truly No BS! version which incorporated solid beats from Lance, and an amazing ending tag, which we hope to make a new tune out of.

We've packed the Camel to capacity on a couple of occasions. This is my favorite part about the band. Nothing gets me through the week as well as knowing we're going to rock the house on Friday night. I hope everyone enjoys this as much as I do!

And last but not least, we're starting to look forward to the summer, a new record, and a new tour. We're putting together details for a trip down south, including a weekend stay in New Orleans. The tour will end right back where it started (Richmond) with a three day recording session (to supplement a weekend in March) for the new record. In addition, we're lining up festivals throughout the summer. A least two gigs are already booked for Camp Barefoot in West Virginia.

That's all for now folks.

Peace and Love,

Dillard and No BS! Brass

ps. check out some of the new youtube videos!

"Thriller"

"Iron Palm"

NO BS! Brass IN 2010!!!!!!! YAY!!

2010-01-12T22:46:00.000-08:00

Sup Peeps!!!!

We will be playing the CAMEL this Friday (Jan 15)!!!!!

First Dance Party of 2010!!!!!! Yeah!!!!!

Special guest::::::3rd District!

Here is our performance on Virginia This Morning on CBS 6!!!!

In case you missed that 9am Jam :) !!!!!

Peace and Love,

Reggie Pace and NO BS! Brass

ps (There are only 10 members) No matter what they say!! :)

NO BS! BRASS ON VIRGINIA this MORNING! on CBS 6

2010-01-05T11:15:00.000-08:00

Hey Peeps!

Happy 2010! THANK YOU ALL for making 2009 so fun for us. I hope everyone had a great time at the NYE party!! and..If you came to any NO BS! BRASS show in 2009.....THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! One of my resolutions is to update this blog waaay more often!! (What's your Resolution?) So here we are!

We will be playing "Brass Scene Kids" from our upcoming self-titled album on Virginia this Morning!! JAN 6TH 9 a.m. on CBS 6!!!I know it's early but....yeah...it's early...try to get up and check it out anyways :) <Virginia this Morning!! JAN 6TH 9 a.m. on CBS 6> You can see a clip of us playing on the last year on The DailyFix on RVAMAG.com

Pic by Elliot Robinson.....Hopewellnews.com .... More pics from 1st annual NO BS! BRASS Canned Food and Coat Drive HERE!! <Virginia this Morning JAN 6TH 9 a.m. on CBS 6>

NEXT SHOW: JAN.15th at the Camel!!
Shout Outs!!
RVAMAG.com
TheCamel.org
hopewellnews.com
RattleMouth
Rvajazz.com
Richmond.com

Peace and Love,
Reggie P. and NO BS! BRASS

2009 Wrap-up

2009-12-29T10:02:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! We've had an amazing 2009, with highlights including the release of "Alive in Richmond," an East Coast Tour, and rocking out at Best Friends' Day. We're finishing the year just as strong. The most recent canned food and coat drive at the Camel, was a huge success. Reggie drove to the Food Bank and Goodwill with an entire SUV full of goodies! Way to go Richmond! The show was highlighted in "Hopewell News". We also were named one of Richmond.com's Best Music of 2009.

To end the year, teaming up with Fuzzy Baby and Rattlemouth, we'll be rocking down the house at Artspace at Plant Zero. More info can be found here. Be sure to come out and bring in the new decade in style!

Much love,

No BS Brass

The 1st Annual NO BS! BRASS Canned Food and Coat Drive!!! @ THE CAMEL DEC. 11th

2009-12-03T13:23:00.000-08:00

Hey Peeps!
I know its been a while since we've spoken. But I have an announcement.....................

Its time for...The 1st Annual NO BS! BRASS Canned Food and Coat Drive!!! @ THE CAMEL DEC. 11th

Bring a Canned Good to the show, and get $1 off admission per Can! (UP TO 3 Cans!!)

Bring a new or gently used coat and get in for $3!!!!!

Proceeds will go to the Central VA FOOD BANK! and the Good Will!!

The opening Band will be HIGH NOON...some very talented Young musicians for right here in RVA (James River, Patrick Henry and Atlee HighSchools)....(Let's keep the scene growing!!! awesome!!)

....And there will be special holiday themed stuff everywhere.
I'm talking tunes and decor. and holiday drinks!!!! YES!!!

COME ON OUT AND HAVE A GOOD TIME!!!! IT FEELS GOOD TO GIVE!!! LET"S KEEP THE FOOD BANK AND THE KARMA BANK FULL!!!

The 1st Annual NO BS! BRASS Canned Food and Coat Drive!!!
December 11th
930pm
The Camel (1621 W. Broad St.)
$6 ($1 off per Can..((up to 3 cans!!)))
$3 (if you bring a new or gently used coat)

photo by Eva Russo

NEW SHIRTS! BIG UP TO RVA-TV! SHOW THIS FRIDAY with HOT POLITICS!

2009-11-10T11:28:00.000-08:00

Hey EVERYBODY!!!!
LONG-TIME-NO-SEE!

We will be returning to the Camel this FRIDAY NOVEMBER 13th!!!!
The opening band is Hot Politics ...from NC! (Super Tower of Power-esque)
We have tons of new stuff to show you!!!

HOODIES!!
Black and silver and Red and Black

T-shirts!!!
Black and Red--- Red and Black
Black and Silver---Green and White
Brown and White--Black and Blue
Black and Yellow
and few
ladies Black and Pink...a few

Hope to see you there.
$6

	NO BS! BRASS BAND! GLOBAL!!!!!
	Party - Night of Mayhem

	Friday, November 13, 2009 at 9:45pm
	Saturday, November 14, 2009 at 1:45am
	The Camel
	1621 W. Broad St.
	Richmond, VA

COOL HALLOWEEN IN RVA VID! FEATURING NO BS! Brass, the Halloween Parade AND G5..CHECK IT OUT (explicit)

"Plan B" pilot: (C5F) Carnival of 5 Fires from RVA TV on Vimeo.

OCTOBER!!! YAY!!!

2009-10-19T12:30:00.000-07:00

BrassTastic: The NO BS! Brass Newsletter!!! OCTOBER!!

Oct 18: Tonite night (Monday) We’ll be

playing a very special show at the Camel with an awesome band from Texas with a band called Snarky Puppy. They are bringing Zach Brock, who is an awesome violinist. Check his stuff out on Myspace

. Doors open at 7pm. Early show.I know you don’t do anything on Monday’s so come on out!! JK!

Oct. 30- We will be playing at the Southern in Charlottesville

. We’re opening for the awesome band from Philly called Man Man. Come on out C-Ville The show is at 9pm.

Oct. 31-We will be playing the fourth annual Halloween parade in Richmond. It starts in Monroe park at 7pm and winds through Oregon Hill. Come march with us and play an i

nstrument, wear a costume. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Right after that, we’ll be playing at Gallery5 for the Carnival of 5 Fires at 9pm.

Thank you guys so much for all your love and support!! Hope to see you guys

tomorrow night!

Peace and Love,

Reggie Pace and No BS! Brass

Walking the Walk: Impressions from the Richmond Folk Festival

2009-10-13T18:29:00.000-07:00

By Bryan Hooten

One of the great things about living in Richmond’s Fan neighborhood, like most of the band does, is that we can walk to just about anything we want to. On Saturday I made the journey down to the Doubletree Hotel on Franklin St., which served as the housing for artists in the Richmond Folk Festival. After a mile walk through some gorgeous fall weather, I found Pace and his girlfriend Lauren hanging out in the lobby. We shared stories from last night’s gig and video shoot at The Camel while the rest of the guys wandered inside. I had to be torn away from the television, on which the Alabama Crimson Tide were battling Ole Miss. After picking up our official artist credentials, we piled into a small bus and were escorted down to the festival site on the shore of the James River. The Richmond Folk Festival gathers of phenomenal musicians from across the globe, some coming from locations like Tuva, India, Korea, Puerto Rico and countless other far-flung locations as well as many parts of the United States. As the bus wound its way through the crowd, people who could see our matching shirts from outside began cheer and/or tap on the windows. Feeling a surreal humility, we inched our way slowly past a few of the many tents and booths and came to rest behind the Ukrops stage.

While we waited on standby for the parade to begin, we chatted it up with some of the festival-goers. I got to catch up with my friend Chris and my former teaching partner Steve, both of whom were volunteers. I also exchanged handshakes and stories with Jorge Negron, former leader of Bio Ritmo (my first steady gig in Richmond), who had brought his Master Bomba Ensemble up from Puerto Rico. On the stage, a group from Columbia, La Gran Banda dished out a healthy dose of cumbia and other traditional rhythms. The front man darted back and forth, pausing only to unleash some dazzling footwork while the horn section blasted in call and response jubilation with the singers. A sizeable number of people from the audience rushed towards the band, matching the front man’s every move, all while waving Colombian flags. Reggie Chapman and Lance joined the party as well. The scene is beautifully documented on this Richmond Times Dispatch slideshow, starting about half way through.

After half an hour or so, we were rounded up and placed at the foot of the stage, where the Gerloff/Parch Memorial Parade was about to begin. Gary Gerloff and Francesca Parch were two ardent Festival supporters who had passed away in the last year and the parade was offered in their honor. We opened the march with our rendition of Just a Closer Walk With Thee, allowing the lament of Reggie Pace’s trombone to grow into a raucous, full-band celebration. I noticed a waving friend of mine every fifty feet or so as we got moving and I could hear people screaming out the names of other guys in the band. As we crossed onto Brown’s Island proper, Chapman launched into Cinnamon Girl, a rollicking, riff based tune complete with love-sick lyrics (heard on the slideshow). I don’t think the crowd could quite hear the call of the verses but they all joined in on the “OOOOOOH!” response. I looked back for a second and noticed a few umbrellas popping up. Those of us in the band who had spent some time in New Orleans recognized the homage to the Second Line tradition. Pulling us to a stop behind the Altria stage, Pace cued up the first few bars of one of our older tunes, Moodring. Its dense, funky, angular opening lines gave way to a euphoric solo section while the crowed pulsed with energy, hands waved and smiles beamed through the fading light. We paraded back to second half of Pace’s Hajji, an Ethiopian-inspired tune fitting of the multi-cultural milieu that was the Folk Festival.

After some handshakes and a few goodbyes, we piled, once again, into our bus and were shuttled back to the Double Tree Hotel. I would be doing most of my Folk Festival listening tomorrow since I was hosting my own Ultimate Porch Sit Fall Festival later that night. We woke up on Sunday to discover we had made the front page of the Richmond Times Dispatch, courtesy of the photography of Eva Russo. The Folk Festival is one of the best parts of living in Richmond and we were glad to walk the walk with so many music fans.

Peace and love,

No BS! Brass

VIDEO SHOOT!!! FRIDAY OCT 9th!! @ the CAMEL!!!!!!!!!!

2009-10-08T08:49:00.000-07:00

Hey PEEPS!!!!

YOUR NO BS! BRASS BOYS WILL BE SHOOTING THE REST OF OUR MUSIC VIDEO/DVD THIS FRIDAY @ THE CAMEL!!!!
WE WILL ALSO HAVE BRAND NEW SHIRTS!! (YAY! NEW COLORS)

THE OPENER WILL BE...... WIRE IN THE WALLS ....FROM L.A....COME SEE SOME NEW MUSIC!!!

WE HAVE SOME NEW TUNES ALSO!!!!! YAYAAAAA!!!

SO COME BE A PART OF HISTORY!!! WEAR YOU NO BS! SHIRT IF YOU GOT ONE!!!!! YAAAAAAAAY!

PEACE AND LOVE,
REGGIE P. AND NO BS! BRASS

Host:	NO BS! BRASS BAND! GLOBAL!!!!!
Type:	Party - Night of Mayhem
Network:	Global

Start Time:	Friday, October 9, 2009 at 9:40pm
End Time:	Saturday, October 10, 2009 at 1:40am
Location:	The Camel
Street:	1621 W. Broad St.
City/Town:	Richmond, VA

$6
$

Final Tour Diary

2009-10-06T14:51:00.000-07:00

Bryan's final entry of the "Buskin' in the USA Tour" log is finally here! Don't forget to check us out on Friday at the Camel this Friday (details to come soon).

The other 3 entries can be found here:

Part I

Part II

Part III

Now without further ado...

Where were we? Oh yes. It’s Saturday morning and we were all stumbling out of the van, having just driven through the night from NYC to Richmond. Without passing go or collecting $200 most of us went straight home to catch a couple of hours of sleep. By a couple, I mean two, literally. Before long it was time to meet up again, this time at Paradise Park. Paradise is one of several “pocket parks” that dot the landscape of Richmond’s fan area. We all worked our way to the park in various states of exhaustion and shared stories of our naps or how we didn’t sleep at all. Richmond’s joyful community spirit was on display that day as children ran, crawled and lept over the park’s recently painted geometric shapes. Parents formed small circles and shared the news of the neighborhood. After a welcome speech and a few words by the artists responsible for the park’s makeover, No BS! rallied the attendees and led them around the block for a raucous celebratory parade. We played a few tunes to the appreciative crowed and were then treated to a delicious dinner and a couple of beers by the event’s organizers.

Energized by the positive vibes at the park we headed over to Shields Ave. for our gig at Jonny Z. Fest. Jonny Zanin was a young Richmond drummer, artist and community activist who passed away suddenly in 2007. We were honored to be part of the festival that bears his name. By the time I got there I noticed Marcus, Pace and Chapman setting up to play with another band, forming up the horn section for our friend Branch. I also saw lots of other Richmond musicians milling around, including Trey Pollard, Scott Burton and Scott Frock, a No BS! alumnus who joined us for the gig. Tiffanie Chan, wife of our trumpeter Taylor Barnett, also made it out, with their daughter in tow. You can catch a glimpse of her irresistible cuteness in this video of us playing Lance Koehler’s Street Fighter-inspired tune, Boss Battle. Somehow we all dug deep and delivered what might have been our most high-energy show of the tour. One could tell that we had been playing together a lot but no one could tell how tired we were.

In the end, it was a blast driving up and down the east coast, bringing our music to the people. Having a home like Richmond to come back to makes the trip even more fun. Keep your ears open, No BS! will be headed your way soon.

Gig Tonight at VCU Commons

2009-10-01T07:37:00.001-07:00

From the VCU TelegRam:
"Activities Programming Board Live presents the NOBS Brass Band today, Oct. 1, at 7 p.m. in the University Student Commons, Commonwealth Ballroom. There will be free food and drinks. Free tickets can be picked up in the Break Point games room."

VCU students come on out and bring a friend!

Tour Notes Vol. III

2009-09-27T18:12:00.001-07:00

Here's Bryan's third installment of the notes for the Buskin' in the USA Tour 2009:

No BS Busking Tour day 3….

“Hey! Let’s go!” was the refrain of the morning. After what could not have been more than three hours of actual sleep, we peeled ourselves off of the floor and stumbled upstairs for some breakfast Josh’s apartment. For me it was peanut butter and bread with a swig of orange juice. The rest of the guys downed variations of the same. Although, at one point everyone said, “I’m ready to go when you guys are,” we didn’t’ leave the house for at least another hour. The single bathroom versus the hygiene needs of ten dudes probably had something to do with it.

By the time we finally got rolling, we each had a piece of Lance’s drum set in hand. The plan was to hop on the L train, hitting Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn and then head to a couple of spots in Manhattan. It was quite an adventure getting the drumset, all of our horns, the merch case and our mostly gigantic selves down the stairs, through the gate and into the subway car. Getting out was even more of a challenge, seeing as how climbing stairs is much more difficult than stumbling down them. Our rambling wreck emerged from the tunnels and spilled out onto Bedford avenue. We had printed out directions to the precise intersection that displayed a mural by Nick Kuszyk. One of Nick’s paintings was the inspiration for our Alive in Richmond album cover.

After a quick, ninja-like set up, we launched into our set and even the notoriously fast paced residents of New York City slowed down or stopped to listen. Nick actually shot this video of Iron Palm. I can think of no better place to unleash that particular tune’s frenetic energy. We played for an hour, uninterrupted, and then filed into the bagel shop on the corner for lunch. As with our previous busking sets, we made enough money for everyone to buy lunch. Once the hydration and replenishing of calories was complete we hit the bricks again for our epic schlep into Manhattan.

A few more stops on the subway and a brisk walk put us in the center of Union Square, where we could all feel the energy of the city. Thousands of people were taking in the sun, playing guitar, passing out flyers or just relaxing in the grass. Near to where we were setting up a group of guys were tossing around some willing but unfortunate and slight young woman. Clearly she could have broken herself on the concrete below but her trust in her friends obviously trumped that concern. Just as Lance was tightening down his hi-hat, a rather large police officer strode up us. He inferred from the horns and drums that we were a band and let us know that we couldn’t play in the park. He explained that the groups of people at tables handing out flyers about fifty yards in front of us had a secured a permit for that day and that he had already shut down some other musical groups. Everyone was bummed, including the officer, but he did direct us towards Washington Square, where he assured us we wouldn’t have a problem.

We picked up our gear and carried it the eight short blocks to Washington Square. We headed towards the giant central fountain, where people of all ages and body types splashed gleefully in the water. Along the way we passed a bass/drums/sax jazz group, some bucket percussionists and rather lithe guy compressing himself into a plexiglass box for a horde of cheering onlookers. We launched into Reggie Chapman’s Brass Scene Kids as the sun began to set over the New York skyline. Again we were surrounded by onlookers and again we watched people transform from bystanders to head-bobbers to dancing machines. I don’t think that will ever get old. After a few tunes another police officer eased up to the trombone side of the band and said he really enjoyed what we were doing but that we might want to keep the volume down a little. Apparently it’s not cool to use a megaphone out in public unless you are an authority of some kind. With our new parameters in mind, we continued to play until a souped-up golf cart carrying a parks and recreations official whizzed around the fountain and lurched to a halt in front of the trumpets. The guy was far more winded than he should be after a relaxing golf-cart ride when he said “You guys have GOT to keep it down. The parks director is here today and I could get in big trouble.” “Ok” we said, respectfully and continued about our set. This time even more quietly. I guess there’s only so softly you can play with three trombones, three trumpets a saxophone a tuba and a drumset complete with roto-toms. We finished off with our redition of Thriller, but not before being orbited several more times by the glaring parks official.

After the set we plopped down by the fountain and took a minute to relax after a hard days work. We also tried to forget that later that night we had a gig to play, a seven-hour drive back to Richmond, and two more gigs when we got there.

A lovely young German woman introduced herself to me after the set and wanted to know more about our gig at Uncle Mike’s. I gave her directions as best I could and she went on her way with a smile.

As we were relaxing, another show was about to begin. A couple of guys with backpacks began creating a wide circle out of masking tape in front of the fountain. One of the guys took a knee and bowed his head while the other paced around the circle muttering to himself, a giant Bible clutched in his left hand. We all knew what was coming.

“I AM A MISSIONARY,” he screamed. “I HAVE COME HERE TODAY TO SHARE THE WORD OF THE LORD! YOU ARE ALL SINNERS!”

Most of the people milling around the park paid him little attention and a few donned ironic smiles.

The members of No BS come from a wide variety of spiritual and religious backgrounds but we all agreed that this guy’s fire and brimstone, believe-this-or-you’re-going-to-hell, message wasn’t doing anybody any good. Rob actually handed the guy a No BS! sticker, which the missionary held between his left thumb and the Bible. After creating an impromptu percussion and singing jam session in attempts to drown out the messenger of doom we began the schlep to Uncle Mike’s, the site of that evening’s gig.

It’s been my experience that NYC bars book a ton of bands per night in hopes of turning the audience over for each set. This was also the case here. After a quick load in and dinner we returned to Uncle Mike’s and caught the last song of an enthusiastic, if not polished set by a local band. As soon as their drummer kaboomed the final chord of the tune, the bar emptied. All that remained in this dive-ish bar were the sequen-clad female bar tenders and a frantic sound man. To our surprise, the place began to fill up again and we saw many familiar faces from the crowds that gathered around us earlier in the day. The young German woman was there too.

We raced through a 40-minute set that was met with much cheering and dancing. To get a sense of the energy, here are videos of Brass Scene Kids and Boss Battle. After the gig, the lovely German woman and I exchanged information, but alas, I never saw her or heard from her again. The following events occurred in dizzying succession:

We grabbed all of our stuff and again piled into the subway, joined by some old friends of mine.

We hung out in Brooklyn’s ultra-hip bar, Matchless.

We piled our stuff back into the trailer.

We tried to leave NYC.

I made a series of navigational errors that cost us almost an hour.

We got back to Richmond at 11am after twenty-six hours of music making a traveling.

The tour wasn’t over yet, though.

We Love RVA Photographers

2009-09-16T17:19:00.000-07:00

Throughout our stay in Richmond, we've been blessed by the cities great photographers. People like PJ Sykes and Tony Lynch just to name a couple. Well, they've really outdone themselves this time with their work at Best Friend's Day '09. They dealt with pouring rain, flying beer cans, people climbing on rafters, our usual rowdiness and came out with some amazing stuff! Check out the photos on Flickr to see more!

Thanks for all of the great photographers in town!

NO BS! BRASS IN NYC AND MORE!!

2009-09-03T09:35:00.000-07:00

Hey Peeps,

Thank you sooo much for coming out to the Camera Party!!! We've already received some sweet footage and pics but...KEEP THEM COMING!!! WE LOVE THEM!!

Here are some NEW videos of us from the "Busking in the USA" Tour...Check em' Out!! Post them on Facebook or twitter(@nobsbrass) ...Leave some comments if you want!! GO RICHMOND! GO RICHMOND! GO RICHMOND! ITS YOUR BIRTHDAY!!! OH YEAH! OH YEAH!!!
READ ABOUT THE TOUR HERE: Part 1 and Part 2

Peace and love,
Reggie Pace and the NO BS! BRASS FAMILY

NO BS! ALIVE IN NYC!!! BROOKLYN STAND UP!!!!!!
David Hood solos. Artwork and camera work by Nick Kuszyk.

in Richmond at JOHHNY Z FEST

NO BS!!!! Back to School Camera Party!! @ the Camel THIS FRIDAY!!! $1 off if you bring a camera!! ALL AGES!!!

2009-08-26T18:07:00.000-07:00

What up PEEPS!!!
LETS START THE SCHOOL YEAR OFF RIGHT!!!!
CAMEL PARTY! CAMEL PARTY!
CAMERA PARTY! CAMERA PARTY!

We're thinking of making a music video from the footage and pics.
I'm sure that we will use those pics all over the place(CD art, New Website, Blog, Facebook, Flyers etc.)
We want you all to feel like you're a part of the NO BS! BRASS FAMILY!!
We LOVE YOU!!

Rules:
Camera CANNOT be broken or dead. (Lindsey...nice haircut:) )
Camera must NOT be a phone.

If you bring an HD camera...we will reimburse your $6 once we got the video..voucher style!!!

THAT"S RIGHT FOLKS... $1 OFF IF YOU BRING A CAMERA, TAKE PICS, AND UPLOAD THEM TO FACEBOOK OR EMAIL THEM TO US!!!
FREE ADMISSION IF YOU SHOOT HD VIDEO!!!! YES! YOU HEARD ME RIGHT!!

THIS FRIDAY !!!!!!

PS We will be raffling off our Bull Horn

DEETS!!!!

Host:	NO BS! BRASS BAND! GLOBAL!!!!!
Type:	Party - Night of Mayhem
Network:	GLOBAL
Price:	$6

Start Time:	Friday, August 28, 2009 at 9:45pm
End Time:	Saturday, August 29, 2009 at 1:45am
Location:	The Camel
Street:	1621 W. Broad St.
City/Town:	Richmond, VA

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!!!!!!!

Peace and Love,
NO BS! BRASS

No BS! Brass Tour Reflection, Vol. II Big Ups! to RVAJAZZ.COM

2009-08-23T15:50:00.000-07:00

No BS! Brass Tour Reflection, Vol. II

This was originally posted by our good friends at www.rvajazz.com

Go there often and check their calender and awesome postings! Seriously.Do it!!

From August 5-8, No BS Brass, Richmond’s Manliest Band (as described by Style Weekly) set out on a busking tour. We drove, we played on the street, we drove again. These are our adventures, as told by Bryan Hooten, trombonist and usually successful navigator.

After what would be our last full night’s sleep for a few days, we reconvened at Lance’s to depart for DC, Philadelphia and New York. We had planned to busk at a few locations in the first two cities and come to rest in Brooklyn during the wee hours of the morning. Unfortunately, reports of bad weather canceled our stop in DC and we decided to press northwards. The previous day’s driving music had included Tuvan throat singing, Tabla music, Armenian jazz and Balinese Jaw-Harp duets. Today we checked out the new (unreleased) Fight the Big Bull/Steven Bernstein album, among other things. As we rolled into Philly, Reggie put on the only reasonable choice, The Roots. The sounds of their first album, Do You Want More ?!!!??!, thumped through the van, summoning many an approving roof punch.

Lance snaked the van through the neighborhoods of west Philadelphia until we eased to a stop on South Street, the area’s main drag. Pouring out of the van, clown-car style, we each went in search of liquid related activities. Reggie Chapman, our resident tea aficionado, found a hip coffee shop managed by a stunning and friendly attendant. As per his recommendation, almost all of us made a trip into the shop at least once during our time on South Street. Another group of us went in search of restrooms and found relief in a nearby fire station. The fire-fighters were equally friendly and curious about why we all had on the same shirts. Come to think of it, we were getting a lot of looks that said the same thing. We explained that we were in a band, an answer that always gets a smile and a nod.

Directly across the street from the fire department was an abandoned Subway restaurant, the perfect place for a busk. With blinding speed we retrieved our gear from the van, hurried to our spot and set up. Not sure how long we’d get to play before the cops or store-owners or neighbors would shut us down. By the time we looked up from the first tune, we were again surrounded by a crowd of smiling, fascinated people. It felt good to hear Reggie Pace speak over the bullhorn what would become our mantra for the trip:

"Hey everybody! We are the No BS Brass band and we’re from Richmond, Virginia!"

As we played though our set, the crowd grew, Marcus’ trumpet case filled with dollar bills, email lists were signed, CD’s were bought, stickers were handed out, and a good, sweaty time was had by all. Out of the corner of my eye, through the multiple tuning slides on Chapman’s bass trombone, I could see a mass of bike cops starting to form. They sat motionless, leaning over their handlebars, sunglasses reflecting the cityscape. At the end of the last tune a few of them coasted over to our corner. Were we getting a ticket? Were we being asked to leave? Were we in big trouble?

“Where are you guys from?”
“Richmond, Virginia. We’re on the way up to New York.”
“I really like your music. Can I get a CD?"

A few of us handled several different versions of this conversation with the cops and with the bystanders and we were once again encouraged by the response. Reggie even sold one of the officers a CD. After a few more minutes of hand-shaking and thank-yous, We packed up the van and went walking in search of the most sough-after of all Philadelphia cuisine, the cheesesteak.

While the rest of the guys piled into Jim’s for a cheesesteak, David and I found a killer falafel place around the corner. Over our dinner, we spoke, as men do, of the world and its people, of music and of growing old.

A post-dinner van-cruise looking for another happening place to busk didn’t turn up much and we decided to make our way to New York, leaving Philadelphia at 11:30pm. The drive up was largely uneventful until some combination of Lance’s driving and my navigation led us into Manhattan even though our directions had us passing below it to get to Brooklyn. Almost everyone in the band was asleep at this point so nobody really noticed the detour until we arrived at our destination at around 4 am. We stayed the night at our friend Josh’s apartment. Josh used to play with Richmond guitarist and bandleader Scott Burton in a group called Ones and Zeroes and now lives in Brooklyn, building guitars. The Richmond musical community reaches far and wide, but always feels like a family. Stumbling wearily in to the basement of the apartment that had been Glows in the Dark’s refuge a few weeks prior, Reggie Chapman and Reggie Pace found spots to crash on a couch and air mattress respectively while the rest of us spread out on the linoleum floor. Short as it was, that night contained some of the most efficient sleep of my life.

Read part 1

Peace and love,
NO BS! BRASS Photo by Issac Harrell

Fish Tacos!

2009-08-20T17:40:00.000-07:00

Awesome Weekend Ahead!

2009-08-19T22:35:00.000-07:00

We've got a great weekend of stuff coming up! First, is the annual Best Friend's Day at Hadad's Lake. For anyone who hasn't ever been, you have not really seen a Richmond spectacle. Imagine every type of person in Richmond from the age of 15 to 35 (or more), packed together enjoying food, beer, a water park, music, and each other. We're among many bands playing that day, and we're busting out some sweet stuff to celebrate. Come check it out to see what we do!!!!

The second show of the weekend is the No BS Brass debut at Lulu's in Shockoe Bottom. Come out to enjoy a new experience of your already beloved band, over some great food and drinks!

NO BS TOUR Reflection Vol. I Thanks RVAJAZZ.com

2009-08-12T12:24:00.000-07:00

This was originally posted by our good friends at Rvajazz.com Go there often and check their calender and awesome postings! Seriously.Do it!!

No BS! Brass Tour Reflection, Pt. 1Last week, No BS Brass, Richmond’s Manliest Band (as described by Style Weekly) set out on a busking tour. We drove, we played on the street, we drove again. These are our adventures, as told by Bryan Hooten, trombonist and usually successful navigator.

Busking is the practice of performing in public places for tips or gratuities.

The band members start arriving at Lance Koehler’s (drums) house around 2pm on Wednesday afternoon. For those not in the know, Lance’s house is also home to Minimum Wage Recording, where No BS, Fight the Big Bull, Ombak, Glows in the Dark, Bio Ritmo, Brian Jones and countless other Richmond bands have laid down their records. Many of us were rolling in immediately after some serious travel. Taylor Barnett (trumpet) had just returned from Hong Kong, where he was visiting family and performing. Luckily the jet-lag/time-change was on his side this time. After some last-minute stuff-grabbing and packing of the trailer, we all piled into a fifteen passenger van by about 3pm. Most of us spent the quick drive to Charlottesville catching up and telling stories. I had been out of town for the previous month so I had plenty to hear. At some point in the journey, during a discussion of when the band would get some food and who would pay for it, Rob, our lead trumpet player, shouted from the back seat “I don’t even need to eat, I’ll just go get that killin’ Chris Potter record.” Hilarity ensued. A cacophonous roar of laughter and van-roof punching erupted into our confined space. This quote would be repeated countless times over the course of the week in varying accurate impersonations of Rob’s voice.

Before we go on, I must explain a bit of the history of this van-roof punching business. During my time in the salsa band, Bio Ritmo, punching the roof of the tour van became an expression of anger, frustration, excitement or just the punctuation at the end of a declarative sentence. Roof-punching has now become part of the No BS vocabulary. Dillard, one of our trombonists, attempted several times that day to master the technique with little success. He’s young though. He will learn.

We found a place to park near the downtown mall in Charlottesville, a picturesque strip of the city that is closed to cars and frames a slew of local shops and restaurants. After scouting out a spot towards the center of the mall, we set up the drums and arranged the stickers, CD’s and T-Shirts. We started playing not totally sure how our enormous size and volume would be received. Within a few bars of "Lando," however, we were surrounded by fascinated, head-bobbing onlookers, including one uncomfortably enthusiastic dancer. As the crowd gathered, we quickly found our groove. Marcus and Reggie Pace (trombone) dealt out thrilling solos while Lance and Stefan (tuba) laid a rock-solid foundation. Reggie Chapman (bass trombone) electrified the crowd with his megaphone singing and trombone intros. All the dance moves came out as well. When not playing, Taylor often took on the role of email-list distributor, stepping out of the band to pass around paper and pen, collecting the addresses of new No BS fans.

LESSON #1: Bring someone with you to work the crowd.

Our tip jar quickly filled up and by the time we were respectfully given the ‘15 more minutes’ sign by a local police officer, we had played for almost an hour. New fans and old friends came rushing up after the final tune, including former member Hayden Hopkins, for whom the tune ‘HH’ is named. This busk was a great one, and foreshadowed more adventures. After a quick pack-up and single file procession past the counter of a delicious dumpling joint, we navigated the van through the winding streets of the UVA campus and up to the hill-top studios of WTJU.

We were met by a crew of three friendly guys and hurried to set up in their small auxiliary studio. Somehow, we crammed the whole band in to a 10’x10’ room, with a significant amount of that space taken up by the soundboard. If you have seen No BS live, you will recognize this as a towering achievement. No BS is a huge band both in numbers and individual size. Marcus and I had to be especially careful, however, since we were positioned almost on top Lance’s crash and ride cymbal, respectively. After a brief intro by a DJ who seemed to be surprised by our name every time he read it, we started playing around 9:15 pm, blowing through many of our most up-tempo tunes. It was fun hearing the band play just as hard alone in a room as it does in front of our home crowd at The Camel in Richmond. The set was broken up by a quick interview, during which Reggie Pace uttered the phrase “We’re trying to go international, and such.” An hour later, once our time on the air was over, we took a look around the studio, mostly focusing on WTJU’s enormous record collection. We had a good hang up there, listening to some music and checking out a sneak peak of the live recording from the radio show. I found out that Cameron Ralston, bassist for Ombak, Glows in the Dark, Fight the Big Bull and Ilad, was once a DJ at the station.

After a quick stop at a sandwich place and entertaining Jesse Harper’s idea crashing a gig somewhere else in Charlottesville, we decided to head back to Richmond, knowing we had a long journey ahead of us.

Peace and Love,
NO BS BRASS!!!

P.S. Here is a video of us at Johnny Z Fest
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLuLQkczw7U

Free special show @ COUS COUS Tonite!!!! Sweet Opener: R2DToo!!

2009-08-12T10:55:00.000-07:00

What's up peeps?! There's a lot of stuff going on this month in No BS world!!

This Wednesday we'll be at Cous Cous playing a free show! We're doing all kinds of cool, experimental stuff. Come out and see something you've never seen before. 10pm
Opener......R2Dtoo!......: Reggie Pace, Devonne Harris and Reginald Chapman combine to form this devastatingly high-energy trio. Expect beats, bleats and bass-lines.

This Friday, we'll be playing at Capital Ale House with our friends, Ilad for their official album release party. They rule!! Come check it out!!!! 9pm
http://www.facebook.com/search/?init=srp&sfxp=&o=4&q=best+friends+day#/event.php?eid=95331823302

This Saturday, we'll be playing at the Well Versed block party. Awesome!!!!http://www.facebook.com/search/?o=4&init=s%3Aevent&q=well+versed#/event.php?eid=113921449427&ref=search&sid=25507152.813913388..1

AUGUST 22nd!!! BEST FRENDS DAY at HADADS!!!! YES!!!

AUGUST 23rd.....LULU"S 9pm

AUGUST28th BACK TO SCHOOL JAM AT THE CAMEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Spread the word!!
Hope to see you soon!
Peace and LOVE!

Peggie Pace and NO BS! Brass

yes

Back from the Road!

2009-08-09T13:43:00.001-07:00

Sup everyone? We're back from the epic Buskin' USA Tour, which was a great success! We all had a great time, explored some cities, sold CDs, and kicked ass!! August is continuing to be a busy month for us. Head out to Cous Cous this Wednesday, Capital Ale House Friday (w/ Ilad) and Hadad's Lake for Best Friends Day on the 22nd. Yay for being back in the wonderful RVa!

BUSKING THE USA TOUR!!! THIS WEEK!!!!

2009-08-01T10:55:00.002-07:00

Sup Peeps,
Hope you're having a wonderful summer!!

Announcing :::::: the "BUSKING IN THE USA TOUR vol.1"
That's right!! We are about to bring the sounds and love of Richmond to the streets of America!
Here's where were going this time!!
THERE WILL BE EXTENSIVE BLOG-AGE OF EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS! SO STAY TUNED FOR MORE DETAILS and exact street positions!!!!!

Aug 5th...........The Downtown Mall in Charlottesvlie (evening) then
LIVE set on 91.1WTJU Charlottesville 9pm
http://wtju.radio.virginia.edu/stream

Aug 6th (noonish-early afternoon) on the Streets of Washington D.C.
(We'll be in that cool area with all of the Ethiopian Restaurants)

(evening) On the Streets of Philadelphia, PA

Aug 7th (all day) on the streets of NY..Time Square and elsewhere (maybe Brooklyn....more deets soon)

Aug 7th (AT NITE) UNCLE MIKES in Manhattan, NY 9pm

Aug 8th (noon til 130 ish) Paradise Park Opening... RVA
(2pm-on) JONNY Z FEST!
http://fanofthefan.com/2009/07/we-made-a-mural-opening-at-paradise-park/
http://www.richmondmagazine.com/blogs.php?blogID=e3498155bd7a523ded5ddf8d3c513c8b

Talk to you soon!!!
Tell your friends if we're headed to their town,

Peace and love,
Reggie NO BS BRASS!

No BS with Tim Barry

2009-07-17T09:01:00.000-07:00

We've been spending some time with friend and nationally loved musician, Tim Barry, doing some work on his new record. At this point, we'll be playing on two tracks. I'll leave the rest of the details for your ears to discover when the record is released. We're also getting pumped for some sweet stuff coming up in August. We'll be taking a short tour in the first week. More details to come on that later. Best Friends Day is August 22 and there will be a video shoot to accompany that gig.

More immediately, come out to the Camel TONIGHT!!!! 360, a group of high school musicians will be opening. Come out to hear Richmond's Manliest Band along with the future of the scene!!!

WITH OUR POWERS COMBINED VOL 4 and SUMMER BRASS FEST!!!

2009-06-19T16:44:00.000-07:00

Hey Peeps,

This Friday your NO BS BRASS BOYS will be combining powers with Richmond premiere salsa band... BIO RITMO!!! This special show is at PLAZA BOWL...
Salsa-Brass-Band-Awesome-Core. Yes!!

This Saturday!!!
SUMMER BRASS FEST !!!!

Summer Brass Fest!!
Tons of new music including:

New Orleans trombonist Jeff Albert and his Quartet which consists of Albert on trombone, Ray Moore on saxophone, Dave Cappello on drums, and Tommy Sciple on bass.

Verbatim is a duo of trombonist Bryan Hooten(Ombak, No Bs Brass, Fight the big bull) And Drummer Dean Christesen

R2Dtoo! Bone/SousaMomma/Trapkit Trio featuring Trombonists Reggie Pace/Chapman of The Award Winning NO BS! Brass and multi instrumentalist Devonne Harris who plays with every band in Richmond... kinda.

COME ON OUT AND HANG WITH US!!!!!
$7

Jeff Albert Bio...

Jeff Albert leads the Jeff Albert Quartet and co-leads the Lucky 7s with Jeb Bishop. Jeff is also a member of Hamid Drake’s Bindu, George Porter Jr. and the Runnin’ Pardners, Michael Ray and the Cosmic Krewe, the Naked Orchestra, and the New Orleans New Music Ensemble. Recent recordings include Similar in the Opposite Way by the Jeff Albert Quartet on Fora Sound, and Pluto Junkyard by the Lucky 7s on Clean Feed Records. Jeff writes the music and arts blog Scratch My Brain, and co-curates the Open Ears Music Series.

Jeff has had the pleasure of performing in improvised situations with Wolter Weirbos, Jim Baker, Josh Abrams, Georg Gräwe, Tatsuya Nakatani, Dave Rempis, Mike Reed, Jason Stein, Tim Daisy, Jonathan Freilich, Tim Green and many others. In his other life, he has also had the pleasure of performing with a variety of musical acts, including Stevie Wonder, Bonnie Raitt, The Funk Brothers, Wardell Quezergue, Dr. John, Ronnie Milsap, The Temptations, Lou Rawls, The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, and the New Orleans Opera.

Verbatim Bio....

Verbatim is a distress beacon from a distant galactic civilization. The trombone laments the battle between a peaceful people and the invading marauders while the drums hammer out the encoded coordinates of the home planet. This is a story forged in the stars and told in sound.

Bryan Hooten: trombone
Dean Christesen: drums

R2Dtoo! Bio....

3 men playing music about Life, Liberty and The Pursuit of Happiness.

Reggie Pace=Trombone
Reggie Chapman=Sousaphone
Devonne Harris=Drums

With Our Powers Combined Vol. 3!!!!

2009-06-12T08:50:00.000-07:00

We're back at it, combining forces with more awesome bands from Richmond and BEYOND....

Tonight we'll head down to the river with Old School Freight Train to play Friday Cheers. Come check it out!!!

Festivities begin at 6 with No BS Brass and continue with Old School Freight Train.

OSFT Bio:

Tim Dickinson of Rolling Stone put it this way: “Old School Freight Train is off on a timeless new track, blending roots and rock to create a sound that's all their own." In their conception, the members of OSFT, Jesse Harper (vocals & guitar), Darrell Muller (bass), Nate Leath (fiddle), Nick Falk (drums) have recorded with mandolin master David Grisman,toured as Grisman’s backup band, played countless headlining shows across the country; and been asked to cover songs by the likes of John Mayer, Wilco, and Coldplay for the popular bluegrass “Pickin’ On” compilation series.

SCENES FROM THE MAYDAY PARADE!

2009-05-07T09:50:00.000-07:00

We had a blast marching in the MAY DAY parade!!! Here are some pics and a vid........and here's a blurb on MayDay !

"May Day! Workers of the World Unite!*

Today is our day! International Workers Day! Our day to recognize and appreciate the social and economic achievements of the international labor movement........"This May Day we wish to demonstrate the presence of a labor movement in Richmond that is ready to fight for the multitude of injustices in our communities. We wish to join together individuals and organizations who will stand in solidarity with one another, for social justice, freedom and equality!"

You can find pics from the parade
here and here and here.....

Peace,
Pace

P.S.
That dude on snare is NOT in the band. That is all.

Style Weekly Love!!

2009-05-04T10:54:00.000-07:00

Sup y'all! It's been a while, but its almost summertime here in Richmond and we're back!!! If you haven't picked it up yet, Style Weekly has been giving us some love in the recent issue. Grab one before this Wednesday or you'll miss out. In case you do miss it, here are some links.

We're in the Sounds of Richmond compilation, and winner of the manliest band award!

Manliest Band in Richmond: No BS Brass Band
It’s true that there are some pretty dudely concoctions producing sound in this town, but how can one compete with the sheer mass of man that is No BS? You can’t, and if you tried you’d end up crushed in a tidal wave of testosterone and horn blasts. No BS mostly headlines now, but when it got asked to open for somebody else — the Bio Ritmo CD release party last year, for example — it set up in the middle of the audience and involved the whole crowd. Its members are raucous, informal, engaging and a very hard act to follow.

No BS Brass Band, “Ain’t Even Gonna Call Ya”
The musically promiscuous trombonist Reginald Pace and drummer Lance Koehler have rounded up a pack of horns to pour lush New York-and-New Orleans figures over; in this case, a hysterically funny admonishment to a misbehaving girlfriend -- formed but flowing, like bullshit and brass.

With Our Power Combined..Vol. II..Ilad CD RELEASE!! HERE THERE!!

2009-04-09T10:58:00.000-07:00

With Our Power Combined..Vol. II..Ilad CD RELEASE!! HERE THERE!!

APRIL 17th YES!!!!

In this series of shows NO BS! BRASS will combine forces with other sweet Richmond artists. We will be sharing the stage at the exact same time mixing our styles into a delicious, mouth-watering, musical, Richmond smoothie!

This show will feature Ilad.
AND....
It will be the official CD release for their new album HERE, THERE. (the album is amazing ...i have it...it rules!!!)

Ilad is a really special band. You don't want to miss this. NO EXCUSES.
http://www.illadmusic.com

WITH OUR POWERS COMBINED !! VOL. II

NO BS! Brass and ILAD are both on twitter.
Follow TIME!!

http://twitter.com/ILADmusic
http://twitter.com/nobsbrass

so.....
April 17th @ the Camel
945!!!!
$7

We will also be playing with Ilad on April 16th at the Taphouse in Norfolk!!!

Peace,
Pace

Sweet lines from Marcus Tenney

2009-04-03T09:54:00.000-07:00

Marcus posted this on his Facebook page today. It's heavy:

Marcus Tenney is thinking about how much life can be a prison cell sometimes. When he is at work, he feels like shit and doesn't want to talk to anyone. However, when he steps into the sun, he feels that he has stepped into something so inexplicably beautiful, he can't help but return to the place that pays him for his soul.... the cubical.

Word!

-No BS!

NO BS! BRASS + GULL= Awesome night!!

2009-03-31T10:53:00.000-07:00

LAST FRIDAY WAS AWESOME CHECK THESE OUT!!!!!

#1 Alms For the Shore

#2 don't know the name let's call it Renegades. (RIP)

Peace!!!

A Message from Taylor Barnett!!!OH GOODY!!

2009-03-27T13:31:00.000-07:00

AS YOU KNOW.......NO BS! Brass members are into a lot of things........
Here is an update from NO BS! trumpeteer Taylor Barnett..........
"

Hi everyone,

I want to let you all know that I have written a second article an article for RVANews.com discussing the relationship between composition and improvisation. You can read the new article here. Here's a link to my first article, which dealt with free improvisation. At the end of my new article, you can hear a full-length song from my recent album, "For Someone," which illustrates the concepts tht I bring up in the article.

Also, I am playing with the NO BS! Brass band tonight at The Camel (1621 W Broad St, Richmond, VA 23220). It is the first show in our "Collaborations" series in which we team up with other Richmond artists. The one-man-band Gull (a brilliant performer who plays drums, guitar, and sings simultaneously) will play a set, NO BS! will play a set and we will join forces and play newly minted arrangements featuring both bands. The Camel is non-smoking and is the best place to experience NO BS! in our natural element. It will be fun, exciting, and most likely silly at times. Come out and join us!!

On Saturday, NO BS! will be performing at Congregation Beth Ahabah (1117 W. Franklin Street) in a benefit concert for the victims of the recent fire in Oregon Hill. Admission is $5. Read more about the concert here.

I hope you check out the article and feel free to post a comment if you like.

Taylor

--
Taylor R. Barnett

e-mail: taylorbarnett@gmail.com
www.taylorbarnett.com
My debut album "For Someone" is available at
iTunes and at www.cdbaby.com/cd/taylorbarnett

WORD!

Show in Charlottesville a success!!

2009-03-24T07:39:00.000-07:00

YOOO!!!! As we begin a new week, let's take a second to look back on the weekend. We had a great time playing with Old School Freight Train at the Gravity Lounge. Everyone seemed to really have a great time. The crowd didn't really know what to expect from us, but by the time we busted out "Thriller" to end the set, EVERYONE was dancin' and having a great time. The awesome guys in Old School Freight Train were nice enough to invite us on stage during their set. Look out for more collaboration with this awesome band in the works for the future!!!

-No BS!

Ombak: Check it out!!

2009-03-20T17:41:00.001-07:00

As y'all may or may not know, (if you don't, where the hell have you been??) No BS trombonist Bryan Hooten has his own band named Ombak. They have been working on a record for a while and two tracks are ready for public ears. Check them out on the Ombak blog!!!!

-Dillard and No BS Brass

ps. Don't forget about the show with Old School Freight Train in Charlottesville tomorrow at the Gravity Lounge! Sweeetttt!!!

No BS at The Camel

2009-03-17T20:01:00.000-07:00

NO BS! BRASS PRESENTS: "WITH OUR POWERS COMBINED..!!!"

In this series of shows NO BS! BRASS will combine forces with other sweet Richmond artists. We will be sharing the stage at the exact same time mixing our styles into a delicious, mouth-watering, musical, Richmond smoothie!

This first show will feature GULL, the awesome one-man-band.
He plays guitar, sings and plays the drums AT THE SAME TIME! AWESOME!!!! You need to see this to believe it! Awesome.

The show will also feature dancer Rachel Warren.
AWESOME!!
Rachel C. Warren, was born on the west coast, raised in the south, and is now living and working in the north. In 2008 she received her BFA in Dance and Choreography from Virginia Commonwealth University. Upon graduation, she journeyed to Europe to make dance with artists in film and theater. Tired and homesick, she moved to Brooklyn, NY to continue her career as a dancer, teacher, and choreographer. She currently provides care and education to children throughout the city and is a founding member of Courtney Cooke and the Booster Club, a Brooklyn based female duo with a goal to present work in non-conventional places through movement, text, media, and musical collaboration. This is her first performance with NO BS! Brass and definitely not the last.

March 27th @ the Camel!!
$6
"WITH OUR POWERS COMBINED!!!!!"

Upcoming Shows

2009-03-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

Sup peeps! Those of us who are in the UofR Pep Band are home for good after our east coast basketball tour. We now look forward to a couple of shows in the next two weeks. We will be playing with Old School Freight Train for their CD release party on 3/21 in Charlottesville at the Gravity Lounge. We will also join forces with one man band, Gull, and dancer Rachel Warren as part of the "With Our Powers Combined" show on 3/27 at our home at the Camel here in Richmond. Yeeaaahhhh!!!!

-No BS Brass

More Press- "No BS Allowed"

2009-03-10T09:14:00.000-07:00

Everyone go check out the new Richmond Magazine. Here's a link to a short article.

Those of us who are in the UR Pep Band are back on the road tomorrow morning after a couple quick nights at home.

Road Update #1

2009-03-07T13:57:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all. We're all hanging out in Charlotte for the weekend for the Univ. of Richmond Women's Basketball tournament. So far no one has been left in an Arby's or stranded in a different area code. Of course as always, there have been several "burn" and "in yo face!" moments. Here's a good one:

Nate Lee: If you aren't in the business to make money, you're in it for the wrong reason!

Reggie Pace: Man, you ain't even in the business yet, so shut up son!

That one's in Nate's face....

Oh, and the team won today. Game tomorrow at noon against Dayton.

-Dillard, No BS, and other goofy friends.

No BS members to hit the road

2009-03-05T08:18:00.000-08:00

Members of No BS, as part of the University of Richmond pep band will travel to Charlotte, NC and Atlantic City, NJ in the next 10 days. We leave to head south tomorrow. We're sure to have plenty of fun and return back to RVA refreshed and ready to keep writin' tunes. To those who are unfamiliar with the story, "Jackpot" was written after drummer Lance Koehler hit a jackpot on the nickel slots, rolled into the bar where we all were hangin' and shouted, "I hit the motherf*ckin jackpot! Drinks on me!" Maybe something equally awesome will happen this year!

Peace out everyone. We'll update from the road.

-Dillard and No BS

No BS! Rocks the Robinson Theater

2009-03-04T12:06:00.000-08:00

Sup Peeps!

Back on February 20th No BS rocked the house at the Robinson Theater with Fight the Big Bull and Steven Bernstein. Church Hill People's News has a cool write up about the show. There are also sweet photos and sound clips from the evening. Check it out here.

Here's a sweet audience testimony:

"posted by g2thap...... February 21, 2009 10:53 am [#]: at"http://chpn.net/news/2009/02/18/fight-the-big-bull-steven-bernstein-no-bs-the-robins"

After sitting and resting for the last few decades, the Robinson Theater stood up last night and danced. No BS grooved the multiracial, multiaged, multiconnected, multiples in attendance. Spontaneous dancing occurred with a quickness during the 45 minute set. They brassed and drummed out crowd movers from Rush’s “Tom Sawyer” to Mr. Jackson’s “Thriller”.

Then up came Fight the Big Bull with a funky jazz fuzion sound that included bass guitars, saxophones, Trumpets, Tibetan prayer bowls and chains. An eclectic sound that strolled together through out the Robinson unifying the crowds aural sensation.

It was a wonderful show. Thanks to everyone who put it together. Hey you reading this, yes you. Next time they throw a show at the Robinson Theater you really oughta go."

Sweet!
Peace,
Pace

Framing the Void with Bryan Hooten

2009-03-04T11:54:00.000-08:00

Sup Peeps!

Our trombone player Bryan Hooten has been droppin' knowledge all over the place. He's writing a series of essays exploring the relationship between music and negative space. He's entitled them "Framing the Void". You can find the first part on rvanews.com. Here's a little taste:

Our hearts beat in perfect time. We breathe in and out in regular intervals. When we walk or run our feet spend equal time traveling through the air, as do our arms. We try our best to keep our hours of sleeping and waking regular. Nearly identical events distributed evenly through time make up many of the human body’s basic functions. Our health is often determined not by these events themselves but by their regularity, by the space between them. Take, for example, the concepts of the heart rate, the running pace, and the circadian rhythm. Many of our body’s functions keep us alive by framing a negative space. Since it is the product of the human body, music uses nearly identical events distributed through a negative space, time in this case, to create meaning.

This is the first in a four part series of articles exploring music’s relationship with negative space. For simplicity’s sake, we will deal with this negative space in two directions, horizontal (time) and vertical (melody and harmony) even though each is inextricably tied to the other. In this article we will explore the ways in which any piece of music, through its beginning and ending, creates a frame around our experience of time. In the following article, we will explore how a piece of music alters our perception of time’s passing through the rate at which it presents sonic events. We will cover similar concepts in two more articles dealing with the vertical dimension of music.

Find the rest of the article here : rvanews.com

Peace,
Pace

Snow Day!

2009-03-02T19:11:00.000-08:00

Everyone loves a great snow day; No BS is no different! I know for a fact Lance spent a part of the day sledding near the Capitol and I got into a pretty fun snowball fight complete with a snowball launcher that took 3 people to operate successfully. There are few things in life better than a snow day, where the whole city shuts down. And there are few places I'd rather be snowed in, other than Richmond! Enjoy the time off!!

-Dillard and No BS Brass

Musing on the economy

2009-02-26T08:33:00.000-08:00

Everyone is doing it, so why can't I? ESPN reported today that the Dodgers made an offer to Manny Ramirez for a 2 year/ 45 million dollar deal. I love sports as much as the next guy, but damn. Why is everyone complaining so much about executive compensation? Are they making 22.5 million bucks a year just to be a slightly overweight ball player with a colored glove? Oh well. Just a thought.

-Dillard and No BS!

Update on RVAMag

2009-02-24T08:33:00.000-08:00

Yo everyone!! Here's the photo from RVAMag from this month. Casey Longyear and PJ Sykes did a great job.

From Casey's blog:

"For February's RVA Magazine fashion spread I chose to focus on a handful of my favorite Richmond bands. The title "Idle Kids" calls reference from an Inquisition song title off the album "I Think It's Called Inspiration"...which probably would have been more appropriate title for this photo collection of amazing and motivating local artists."

Go Richmond!!

Steven Bernstein and No BS!!

2009-02-23T13:04:00.000-08:00

For those of you who missed it, we had a great time at the Robinson Theater grand opening on Friday night. We enjoyed playing for an eclectic group of people who heard us for the first time (plus we enjoyed delicious baked goods!). The set was taken to a new level when visiting trumpeter Steven Bernstein walked through the trumpet section and out to the mic to solo on The Centepede. In my opinion, it's one of the best versions of that song we've ever played! Fight the Big Bull played next, debuting some of Steven's arrangements for the band.

If you want to check out more of Steven and Fight the Big Bull, come out to Cous Cous on Wednesday!

The Camera Loves you!

2009-02-16T14:01:00.000-08:00

There are some amazing photographers in this great city!

We posted some work of our man P.J. Sykes earlier.

Here are some beautiful shots by the awesome Don Mears from our CD RELEASE Show at the Camel. Check Em Out!! Maybe you're in one!! DON MEARS!!!!!

New Tunes!

2009-02-15T14:21:00.000-08:00

Reginald Chapman, otherwise known as Chapstick or all around cool dude with no hair on the top of his head (which is a large change from when I met him), is workin hard on some new sweetness. "Brass Scene Kids" is ready for debut for this Friday night at the Robinson Theater Community Arts Center. Check it outtttt!!!!

Album Reviews

2009-02-10T23:13:00.000-08:00

Hey Peeps!

Check out these sweet album reviews for our new album "Alive In Richmond!!

Style Weekly= 4 STARS!

All About Jazz= Grade A!!!

Cool photos and reviews of CD release show:

Here! and Here!!

YAY!!!

Sweet Photos

2009-02-10T20:56:00.001-08:00

We were able to have the pleasure of working with local Richmond photographer, PJ Sykes and stylist and entrepreneur, Casey Longyear (of Rumors) on a recent photoshoot for RVA Magazine. They created a vintage feel of a band finishing a gig, and enjoying a drink in a bar. All we had to do was hang out, smoke, and drink!

Be sure to keep a lookout for the full shoot in the next RVA Magazine!

Welcome!

2009-02-10T20:51:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone!

No BS! Brass here to welcome you to the new blog. We'll help keep y'all updated on whatever is going on with us. We love Richmond!

-No BS! Brass