On Friday, March 18, the opening day of the Amite Oyster Festival, local original rock-&-roll band Will Vance & the Kinfolk will take the stage at 5:15 p.m. as the first act to kick off the entertainment schedule for the weekend. The band, who credits 2012 as the year of their official formation, will make their festival debut. Their performance will also be a personal first for Amite born-and-raised front-man Will Vance.
Vance, who serves as the band’s primary songwriter, is excited about being able to showcase the music his band has created to his home community.
“It’s kind of awesome, to be honest with you. There aren’t many places in Amite where you can play live music. It’s cool to be able to play the festival in front of your peers,” says Vance when asked about the opportunity. “We sometimes play out-of-town and out-of-state, so sometimes friends and family can’t make the shows. But it’s nice to come back and be able to show them what you can do.”
In addition to Vance, the band features Garland Hoover on drums, John-Mark Gray on lead guitar, and Tyler Davis on bass. All four members of the band are Tangipahoa Parish musicians that met through associating with the local music scene for several years before the formation of the band. For the last three years, the group has steadily worked to get their name and music out in the South Louisiana music scene and the Gulf States through short run weekend tours. The band has traveled as far west as Austin, Texas and as far east as Orlando, Florida.
“It’s a little new to me,” Vance says of touring on the road. “I’ve lived out-of-state and played out-of-state with other bands, but not as steadily as this one.
Vance says Tuscaloosa, Alabama has been his favorite city to play music on the road so far due to its soulful feel and being close in proximity to Muscle Shoals, the small town known for recording studios that produced hits by artists like Percy Sledge, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. “It’s mind blowing how cool that music scene is. It’s close to Muscle Shoals, and the vibe up there- there’s just something in the water.”
Vance also acknowledged that Amite could one day have a musical vibe due to the city’s positioning on U.S. Route 51, arguably the most important pathway in the history of American music. In the early days of blues, r&b, and rock-&-roll the pathway would have been the most common means of travel between New Orleans and Chicago, meaning Amite would have also been a likely stop for many musicians.
“There are a lot of talented musicians around here. I hope we can put a good light on local original music and create a demand for more showcases for artists like us,” says Vance. “There’s definitely something here. I don’t know what it is. There’s something in the water in Tuscaloosa…maybe there’s something in it here too.” ~ Jesse Brooks