Ants on the Melon
• • • • •

Tuesday night I went up to the River Road Ice House in New Braunfels to see Drew Kennedy. Drew was a fellow history major at Hampden-Sydney College, and graduated a year after I did. Several months ago I read in the college newsletter that he was working on a career as a Texas musician. Well, Tuesday I finally had a free night so I made the trip up there to see him play.

I talked with Drew for a little while when I got there, and he mentioned that Matt Powell would be playing with him, and that he was one of the best songwriters around. Everyone has their own idea of greatness and “best”, so sometimes you just have to see for yourself. In this case, Drew was right.

The show was nice and laid back, just the way I like them. As they began getting ready to play, I grabbed a Negro Modelo and assumed a spot at the bar. There was a small, casual crowd there; apparently everyone there knew everyone else.

Drew and Matt alternated playing, with Matt occasionally dropping a lead into Drew’s songs, very nice. They mostly played their original music, with one or two covers mixed in (including “Sitting by the Dock of the Bay”). Not only are they both great songwriters, but the music was also excellent. At times Matt’s music and singing reminded me of Mofro, but then he’d throw a bluegrass song in there and tear it up. Matt is another Virginian (Franklin county) living in south Texas, so it should have been no surprise that what he was playing reminded me of music from back home. Besides the great music Drew and Matt also went the extra mile to perform comedy acts between songs, because as everyone knows, you can never have too many Chappelle’s Show references.

If you are into acoustic goodness, go ahead and make it out to one of Drew’s or Matt’s shows. Good listening, indeed.