Ryan Scott Travis. Only a name such as this can carry the weight of the raw talent that this young man bears. His voice tolls like somber bells with clarity and boldness heard through his strong vocals and gritty sound.
His southern origins reveal themselves through his light twang and the lap slide guitar picking that mixes beautifully with the folky sound of the cello. It paints pictures of countryside landscapes and smells of cedar traced with nostalgia. His lyrics offer honesty and easiness to the ears of his growing audience with words that present insight on the simplicity of life that are parallel with the understanding of hardship. His focus remains on what good there is to be seen, learned, and understood aside the reality of suffering. It has been said that his sound is a mixture of Guy Clark and The Eagles, but I would also like to note that Travis has a similar affect as Jack Johnson. Just as Johnson puts you at ease, lifts your spirits, and touches on the human experience, as does Ryan Scott Travis, only on a different coast. With his journey having only just begun, – his first EP “Beauty Learns a Thing” released in 2014 – Travis has a promising road ahead as he frontiers the soundscape of country-folk with his latest full length release “The Guadalupe Breakdown”. We are very excited to host this up and coming musician and hope you will love him as much as we do.
Supporting our friend Ryan Scott Travis is none other than Colin Leonard, front man of Atlas Youth. We have seen Leonard’s incredible work as a duo but Wednesday evening we will see the magic in his singularity. With an eerie and smooth vocal, he tells stories in a confessional fashion, similar to Noah Gundersen. It is in Leonard’s choice to sing songs from the heart that leave him in vulnerable positions. Yet in this leap of faith, this vulnerability earns him the trust of listeners thus securing loyal followers. This power to harness the rare quality of relating to listeners by way of transparency is a gift that only a few have mastered – one of them being Taylor Swift. We love having this young man on our stage and are continually refreshed by the grace of his voice. Check out his EP “Valleys” in 2014 here.
The opener for Wednesday evening will be our Musician in Residence, Kyle Cook. Kyle is a Texas A&M student and Corps Cadet with the sweetest of voices you’ll ever hear. He has a tendency to make you sink in your chair and stop breathing with the sound of his voice, in hopes to not miss a single note. The passion with which he performs makes you believe the stories he tells and desire to hear more. His EP “Unworthy” describes a relationship between man and God through asking questions and singing praises that boldly reveal a human heart chasing after his creator. We’re pumped to have you all experience this talented young man.
Come along and bring your friends Wednesday evening at 8 PM to enjoy the solemn weather from inside. Get your tickets here and check out their exclusive Grand Stafford Spotify playlist here.