Why I Am A Dreg

Here’s the thing: I love to perform in front of people Or even just person, ask my wife, she’ll tell you the performing seldom stops. I met The Dregs at Siouxland RenFest about six years ago and was a fan from the first set I watched. I was in The Lost Boys at the time (btw their website is WAY out of date, I know because I designed it before WordPress was a thing) and we had a lot in common with The Dregs; things like a lot of egos to manage, a ridiculously huge catalog of music, surprisingly great a capella songs, and cult-like followings.

I remember The Dregs being one of the reasons I liked South Dakota; but, really, who needs a reason to like South Dakota? We hung out at our hotel after the show and I remember being impressed by the intelligence of the group and how their lyrics made me laugh loudly in a way that made other audience members think I was a shill.

South Dakota Postcard
What’s not to love?

There is something particular about the people in this band. Everyone of us is a feeler. All six of us are emotional and somewhat volatile and may shout when things aren’t going our way. (I can actually say that I have seen everyone in the band shout at one time or another, which really only stands to prove that I can be a very frustrating person to deal with).

Casual Dregs
We also get along most of the time.

 

The great thing about this band, though, is that when we are playing or singing together, something transcendent happens. All the bullshit that we each, individually have to slog through to get to the stage and be funny, seems to melt away. There we are singing and I hear the perfect third of a chord come from Chad and Molly is there with her violin hitting the leading tone back to the one that always makes me smile. Or Suze’s soulful “I’ve seen the glow on the sea tonight…’ or when Rach busts into Black and Tans and silences a room full of boozy audience and, let’s be real, us too. Or anytime Tim starts an a capella tune.

The amount of raw musical  talent The Dregs have is amazing to work with. I get giddy when I hear us sing Dinosaur Bones. These guys take anything written by anyone (even a hack like me) and turn it into gold. What’s more, they hold us to a high standard that makes all of us better at what we do individually. I am such a better musician because this band allowed me to be a part of its journey.

Why am I a Dreg? Because The Dregs are awesome and I want to be awesome too.