I first ran across Uncle Lucius in a live setting last May at the 16th Annual KNBT Americana Music Jam. I met the band in person, but never heard anybody say the name of the band. I finally put the pieces together and realized they were Uncle Lucius. After a quick search and a couple of plays of YouTube videos I realized I recognized their music but had never seen them live. When it finally came time for Uncle Lucius to take the main stage at Gruene Hall it became very obvious why they were on the bill for the Americana Music Jam.
Kevin Galloway came to Austin in 2002 and started paying his dues playing acoustic gigs at open mic nights around town. After several years he and bassist and singer Hal Vorpahl met and started playing together, and they eventually added Mike Carpenter on lead guitar and Jason Armstrong on drums. This 4 piece recorded the band's first album "Something They Ain't" in 2006 and did heavy rotation at local venues as well as beginning to tour as much as they could. As the band began to prepare to record a second album they lost drummer Armstrong who moved on to pursue other interests. They picked up Josh Greco prior to recording "Pick Your Head Up" and he was a perfect fit.
The band continued on with this configuration and cut a live album at the Saxon Pub in 2009. Jon Grossman joined in 2010/2011 and rounded out the band's sound with more vocal support, keys and accordion. They went out on the road and broke in Grossman while preparing for a long-awaited 3rd studio album. In August of 2012 "And You Are Me" was released and the band has been touring aggressively ever since. They have opened and co-billed with some impressive acts such as Shooter Jennings, The Departed and even Ray Wylie Hubbard himself! And of course who can forget the Dirty Uncle Wheeler tour with The Dirty River Boys and The Wheeler Brothers. They really enjoyed the Dirty Uncle Wheeler tour and hopefully there will be more dates soon, maybe we'll get a gander at that combo at Grit 'n Groove!
After a few local dates including SXSW then a stop at the Randy Rogers leg of the Rio Frio Fest in Concan, TX; the boys will begin a tour through Oklahoma, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico then back into Texas in time for Ray Wylie Hubbard's Grit 'n Groove Festival. Although they haven't toured abroad so far, they are currently looking at options that can get them in the air for a little international exposure.
This is my jumble video from the 2012 KNBT American Music Jam at Gruene Hall! Uncle Lucius appears at about 4:14.
links:
Uncle Lucius website
Uncle Lucius on Facebook
Uncle Lucius on Twitter
