The Wood Brothers hit the Midtown Ballroom on Wednesday, Feb. 8. It's tradition for the band to make its way up the West Coast at the beginning of the year, starting fresh with vibrant live shows and the celebration of music.
"It's always a special renewal tour. And having the long break before [tour] puts things into perspective and makes us realize how important [touring] is, how important music is to us but also to everybody," band member Oliver Wood said.
Two brothers, Chris and Oliver Wood, found music long before The Wood Brothers was a band. With separate careers and paths, Chris and Oliver were creating, performing and living the life of musicians. After realizing the strong potential of coming together, The Wood Brothers band quickly formed with Jano Rix as drummer, completing the trio and cohesive sound.
Crossing genres of blues, folk, country, funk, roots rock and more, the trio likes to experiment. When writing new music, The Wood Brothers try to make music they haven't made before and create a sound they've never heard before.
"When people ask us 'how would you describe your music or what kind of music do you play?' there's all these hyphens in it," Oliver Wood said. "It's probably not the best recipe for commercial success, but it's a recipe for artistic freedom and happiness."
Though the band has a dynamic sound, the core of the group has always been the voices from the members, vocal and instrumental. When you hear a Wood Brothers song, you'll know, but every song, album and live performance feels a little different.
A few of The Wood Brothers' most popular songs are, "Luckiest Man," "Postcards from Hell" and "I Got Loaded." Full of harmony, guitar riffs and soulful vocals, even listening to these top three songs shows the dynamics of the band.
On tour, the band will play old favorites and new songs from its unreleased album, "Heart Is the Hero," coming out in the spring. Joining on tour is banjo musician and singer-songwriter Taylor Ashton.
