August 2007
From The Washington Post
Live!
Who: Brother Shamus
When: 9 p.m. tonight
Where: Evening Star Cafe, Alexandria
What happens when a bunch of longtime pals, all of whom have played in separate bands, finally come together to start a new outfit? According to Richard Delos Reyes, bassist and vocalist for the quintet Brother Shamus, "it strengthens our friendship even more that we have another [musical] relationship." He said that his cohorts -- M. Todd Miller (lead vocals, guitar), Eddie Hartness (drums, vocals), Bobby Thompson (slide guitar, guitar)and James Main (percussion, vocals) -- took it "one bridge at a time" while working out the new commitment, but "now I liken it to my marriage. With that kind of respect and trust, that's great."
You can enjoy the good vibes, professional and personal, when the group appears tonight at Evening Star Cafe's No. 9 Lounge, the upstairs retreat where patrons relax on over-stuffed couches with drinks from a full-service bar.
"It's really a cool little hip place down in Del Ray . . . a lot of old locals, I being one of them," Reyes said. "Neighborhoods need places like this, with the neighborhood mentality."
Although Brother Shamus is becoming known in the Washington area for its joyful blend of folk, rock and Southern funk and can do high-voltage concerts with the best of the scene, Evening Star shows tend to have a more mellow feel.
"No cover. No drink minimum, very chill," as Reyes described it. "Don't expect a huge light show or anything like that. We do an acoustic set."
Then again, the guys in Brother Shamus (fans of the film "The Big Lebowski" will get the reference) are used to switching things up. Reyes said that the members had "probably about nine years of playing together" in various configurations, hanging around the open mic night at the Iota Club and Cafe. For a while, Main, Miller and he were together in the party band Lucky Dog, which was the house band at D.C.'s Madam's Organ.
About three years ago, Miller asked Reyes to play on some new songs he'd written.
"When someone says that they're working on a couple of originals, you never expect that this person will come out with a catalog -- and he did," Reyes said.
The three ex-Lucky Dogs became Brother Shamus with the addition of Thompson and Hartness, the latter juggling responsibilities with his nationally known outfit, Eddie from Ohio. Hartness is not from the Buckeye State but is an Arlington native.
Sharing a band member with another group can be challenging, Reyes said, "but our beautiful manager, Jenny, more or less trained us all as musicians to be responsible about our schedule. . . . When we cannot play as a full unit, we go out as a trio. We affectionately call it Shamus Light."
Although the connection might naturally lead to some curious new fans checking out Brother Shamus, Reyes said, "Eddie was very adamant, and we understood why, that he did not want [us] to ride on the coattails of Eddie from Ohio. We really should do this on our own."
With more than 60 original songs in its catalog, an EP and full-length CD available through http://www.brothershamusmusic.com and a nod last year as Best Local Band in the D.C. area on WUSA9.com's A-List 2006, Brother Shamus is on its own way.
-- MARIANNE MEYER
February 2007
From www.rootstime.com/de
Original (Dutch)
Brother Shamus is een vijfkoppige formatie uit Washington DC. Met “Manifest” mogen we kennismaken met hun debuut en laten we maar met de deur in huis vallen, voor 'n eerste cd is dit zeer sterk materiaal. Funky, bluesy singer-songwriter nummers met oersterke teksten. Leadzanger Michael ”Todd” Miller heeft een aparte zangstijl en aangename stem en heeft als voorbeelden o.a. Otis Redding, Tom Waits en Marvin Gaye. Verder is er als tweede zanger en percussionist James Main, bassist Richard Delos Reyes, drummer Eddie Hartness en vooral het vermelden waard: gitarist Bobby Thompson, die in 2000 een eigen band onder zijn naam startte en daarna, na wat omzwervingen in groepen met diverse stijlen, zijn texas-blues gitaarstijl toevoegde aan het geheel en Brother Shamus was een feit. Verwacht hierdoor echter geen pure, 13 in een dozijn blues-cd, want de band brengt eerder een combinatie van pop, blues en funky ritmes, met mooie vocals, prachtig gitaarwerk door Bobby Thompson, die de kunst verstaat van net de juiste dingen op de juiste plaats toe te voegen, zonder zich op de voorgrond te dringen. De rustige vocals van Todd Miller, geven deze plaat eerder het etiket “singer-songwriter” dan “blues” mee. Het is Bobby Thompson die op subtiele wijze de bluesinvloeden toevoegt. De cd opent zeer ingetogen met “Manifest” met een wat complexe aanvang die echter halverwege de goeie “groove” te pakken krijgt en vanaf dan weet je dat dit een plaat wordt om te koesteren, als ze zo doorgaan tenminste. En dat doen ze zeker. “State” wat dan volgt is een prachtig funky nummer, dat je na een paar beluisteringen niet meer uit je hoofd kan verbannen. “Josephine” is zo mogelijk nog funkier, met een leuke J.J Cale getinte gitaar doorheen ’t ganse nummer. Constant op dit niveau gaan ze verder, nummer na nummer blijft deze plaat boeien. Up-tempo ("Cant Slow Down"), sfeervol en mysterieus ("Reverends And Spartans"), met een country tintje ("Weathervane") en rockend als Dire Straits in hun begindagen ("When It’s All Said And Done"). Ik beluister dit juweeltje nu voor de derde keer vandaag en ik weet dat deze cd zal blijven groeien bij iedere beluistering, en dat zullen er nog vele zijn. Brother Shamus’ debuut: 12 songs, 12 parels. Onthouden die naam!
English translation, courtesy of our fan John Trupp
Brother Shamus are musical group from washington DC. With
"Manifest" we can meet with their debut and leave we but with the
door in house to fall. For on first cd is this very strong material. Funky, bluesy singer-songwriter numbers with exceedingly strong texts. Leadsinger Michael "Todd" Miller has a distinctive song style and
pleasant voice and conjures up among others, Otis Redding, Tom Waits and Marvin Gaye. Furthermore there is bassist Richard Delos Reyes, drummer Eddie Hartness and especially mentioning as a second singer and percussionist James Main, bass player Richard: guitarist for many groups with several styles are, texas-blues jet ear style added Bobby Thompson, who started the get the tape rolling its own under its name in 2000, and afterwards, to whole and Brother Shamus were a fact.
Expect because of this however none pure, 13 in a dozen
blues-cdblues-cd blues-cd, because the link brings rather a combination of headstock, blues and funky rhythms, with beautiful vocal, splendid jet ear work by Bobby Thompson, who art understands of exactly the correct things at the correct place to add, without pressing itself on the forefront. Quiet vocal of Todd Miller, give this plate rather the label "singer-songwriter" then "blues". It is Bobby Thompson who adds the blues inflection in a subtle manner.
The cd opens very intoxicatingly with "manifest" with what complex
commencement which gets "groove" however halfway through and as from then meet you that this catchy plate becomes, nourish if they
continue this way at least. And that does certainly them. "State"
what follows then are splendid funky numbers that you can no longer
banish after a couple from your head. "Josephine" is possibly still funkier, which sounds like J.J Cale during the entire number.
Constantly at this level they go further,number after number continues to captivate this plate. Up-tempo ("Can't Slow Down One"), attractive and mysteriously ("Reverends And Spartans"), with a country tinged ("Weathervane") and rock, such as Dire Straits in their beginning days ("When It's All Said And Done").
I now listen to this gem for the third time today and I weep that this cd
will continually grow at every onion, and that still a lot of it will be.
Brother Shamus debut: 12 songs, 12 pearls. To remember that name!
December 2006
Now this is some good music. Sophisticated, varied bluesy rock. Brother Shamus’ recent release “Manifest,” the Arlington group’s first full-length effort, is foot-tapping funky and lyrically strong. The title track starts slowly, then picks up, and you realize this band means business. The song “State” is more funky (“forget the sweet sunshine/if you’re impatient for a taste of the underground,” sings Todd Miller). The upbeat “Josephine” has more of a groove (“killing time is killing me”), and “Reverends and Spartans” is a beautiful, smoky ballad. The saxophone kicking off “Hypnotic Moon” is killer, and the musicianship is crisp throughout. This is good chillin’ music, good cruisn’ music and no doubt solid live. Definitely worth a pick up.
-OnTap Magazine
September 2006
Our CD is here!
How to buy it:
*Buy it at any of our shows
*Buy it at cdbaby.com
*Send our manager a check (please email Jenny at info@brothershamusmusic.com for more details) and she'll send it to you
August 2006
Brother Shamus was voted for Best Local Band in the Washington D.C. area in WUSA9.com's A-List 2006.
May 2006
On May 24, 2006, Brother Shamus appeared on the The Tom Gavin Show on WEBR Fairfax Radio. Click on the links below to view some of the footage recorded in the studio. For more photos of that afternoon, please visit our Photos page.
Thank you Tom for inviting us!
