Desert Noises Heat Up

Today, the group has booking agents who are based in Nashville, which has led to a successful grassroots effort in building a local following. When it comes to Toledo and Lincoln though, Kyle doesn’t really know what has happened.

“We play at this place called Duffy’s every time. I don’t know what the deal is,” Kyle says light heartedly. Duffy’s is a cramped college bar that can either be empty or slammed, depending on the night or who’s playing.

The band may be young, but they’ve begun to capture a sound that a lot of young groups this day are missing: energy. There’s nothing boring about any of their songs, at least not in the traditional, put-me-to-sleep acoustic drones. On stage, the guys look as young as they are, but they play like a tight-knit rock band that has been on the touring circuit for fifteen years. You’ll often spot Kyle shoeless, bouncing across the stage like a kid catapulting himself across a backyard trampoline. It’s a habit he’s started doing every night, keeping at least one consistency in a profession where you’re in a different city at a different venue every night.

These days, the group is packing out tiny clubs and bars across America as they work to build a farther-reaching fan base. They look a bit like what they probably used to be: bedraggled teenagers wearing thrift store t shirts – scrawny and sleep deprived, but boisterous with the kind of laid back excitement that comes as a young musician. And despite their age, most of their influences and beloved tunes come from decades past.

In the van, Henderson says they’ll listen to “a lot of Led Zeppelin. Pat will play a lot of blues stuff. You’ll probably hear me play Twin Sister, ’cause I think that band is awesome. Fleetwood Mac. You’ll hear a lot of music that was around 30 years ago,” even though they were not even born yet.

Regardless, the classic rock of the ’60s and ’70s has been an influence on the group’s music. Their songwriting process is spearheaded primarily by Henderson himself, with the whole group coming together after he brings a song to the table.

“It’s different a lot of times. Some times it will come out in a jam or something like that. But I would say about 80% of the time, I’ll write the song on a classical guitar in my bedroom. For me songs usually come within like one period of sitting down. So, I’ll just have an idea, I’ll be messing around, and something will come – the whole thing will be written right there in like 30 minutes. And then, at that point, I’ll show it to everybody…and then we just kind of flesh it out from there.”

The songs are coming in quickly now, too. Henderson says they’ve already got 30-40 ready for the next album, but they’ll spend the summer touring all over the place. And while they’re excited for the upcoming shows, the truth of the matter is they’re ready to get back and record. Either way, Desert Noises may be somewhere near your doorstop this summer, and if you miss them, keep your ear to the ground for the album they’ll be recording later this summer.