Baltimore band swims hard in small pond
The Insider's Scoop: The Grilled Lincolns
"Funky, semi-poppy rock with a lot of hip-hop influences as well": This is how lead guitarist Riddie Becker described the indescribable sound of the Grilled Lincolns.
Hailing from our very own Charm City, the Grilled Lincolns, began about five years ago at Salisbury University where Becker and drummer Rob Dubois met and decided to form a band.
"We wanted to start a band, and here was this crazy kid Rob who liked rap music, some of what I like, who was open minded enough to give it a shot and we both had equal admiration for each other and each others' talents. We thought we could do something cool by putting that together. And so here we are now," Becker said.
Indeed they are. The Grilled Lincolns have been touring around the D.C. area, playing four to five nights a week, proof that making it in the Baltimore music scene is nowhere close to easy.
Becker said, "Baltimore makes you work harder as a band, because while the people here do like music, there aren't a ton of bars and venues on every corner like there are in other cities. You have to get in good with the venues that do offer live music and you really have to make sure that the people know who you are. Even though Baltimore is small, playing here for so long, we should be fish in a small pond but it's a really small pond, and we are just medium fish."
This isn't stopping the Grilled Lincolns, though, as they continue to put themselves out there week after week. "I am living my dream right now but what's hard is that we're still broke. We scrape by, and all the money that we make usually goes to fixing the van or buying new equipment. But it is a dream in the sense that it's my job to play music ... And the possibilities are endless. Right now I'm making money, having a lot of fun, I'm not at all burnt out from playing and touring, and I'm happy now. If you look down the road, it can only get better, really."
Becker's optimism is contagious and it is clear that the Grilled Lincolns are in it for the long haul, which is why they decided to send Becker as a representative down to the South by Southwest (SXSW) Music and Media Conference in Austin, Texas this year.
Hailing from our very own Charm City, the Grilled Lincolns, began about five years ago at Salisbury University where Becker and drummer Rob Dubois met and decided to form a band.
"We wanted to start a band, and here was this crazy kid Rob who liked rap music, some of what I like, who was open minded enough to give it a shot and we both had equal admiration for each other and each others' talents. We thought we could do something cool by putting that together. And so here we are now," Becker said.
Indeed they are. The Grilled Lincolns have been touring around the D.C. area, playing four to five nights a week, proof that making it in the Baltimore music scene is nowhere close to easy.
Becker said, "Baltimore makes you work harder as a band, because while the people here do like music, there aren't a ton of bars and venues on every corner like there are in other cities. You have to get in good with the venues that do offer live music and you really have to make sure that the people know who you are. Even though Baltimore is small, playing here for so long, we should be fish in a small pond but it's a really small pond, and we are just medium fish."
This isn't stopping the Grilled Lincolns, though, as they continue to put themselves out there week after week. "I am living my dream right now but what's hard is that we're still broke. We scrape by, and all the money that we make usually goes to fixing the van or buying new equipment. But it is a dream in the sense that it's my job to play music ... And the possibilities are endless. Right now I'm making money, having a lot of fun, I'm not at all burnt out from playing and touring, and I'm happy now. If you look down the road, it can only get better, really."
Becker's optimism is contagious and it is clear that the Grilled Lincolns are in it for the long haul, which is why they decided to send Becker as a representative down to the South by Southwest (SXSW) Music and Media Conference in Austin, Texas this year.
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Lorn Hinish
posted 3/31/08 @ 11:07 AM EST
I must say this was an excellent article about The Grilled Lincolns. They are such a top notch band and I have had the pleasure of working with them over the past several months. (Continued…)
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