By Patrick Culkeen
(Editor’s note: The Ray Hendricks Band will perform at MWCC again in March. See the Student Life Calendar in this issue for more info!)
The Ray Hendricks band, a band hailing from Athol who have only been playing as a group for a few months, opened the Ethan Stone concert, performed at MWCC in January. Anyone in attendance who expected to sleep through the opening while awaiting Stone’s performance must have been disappointed, as it was impossible to not be pulled in by front man Ray Hendricks’ towering stage presence.
Hendricks’ gentle yet rhythmic acoustic style and soulful voice evoked thoughts of Ben Harper, but it was obvious that the Ray Hendricks Band was on a mission to stand out well above the “singer songwriter, boy-with-guitar” stereotype.
Lead guitarist Pat Patterson’s lines complemented Hendricks well, and his soulful electric riffs cut through Hendricks’s rootsy voice made it nearly impossible for anyone to not dance in their seat.
One of the highlights of the entire evening came when Ethan Stone sat in with the Hendricks band, playing keyboards on one of the band’s original tunes. The interplay between the musicians — all taking long improvised solos — was reminiscent of a jam band and showed the musicians tremendous command of their respective instruments.
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