ROAD RATS

Some musicians will tell you that life on the road is tough, spending all day driving, sleeping in strange peoples' houses if you're lucky enough to be invited and scrounging for change for your next meal. No River City, a duo out of Atlanta, Ga., has a different view of life on the road. \n"We're driving our asses across the Midwest seeing this beautiful country, meeting new people and staying at their houses, and we go out and play our music every night," says Drew de Man, who sings in addition to playing the guitar, accordion and harmonica. \n"We rolled on this giant sand dune in Nevada, and we ride horses every chance we get," he adds. \nLife on the road definitely has its upsides, but it is not all fun and games. A particularly unfortunate incident occurred when NRC was spending the day in San Francisco. \n"Someone broke into our car and stole a bunch of our equipment," says de Man. "It really sucked that someone would do that, and it killed our whole day." \nInstead of spending the day having fun and shopping in California, the bandmates were forced to deal with a most exasperating situation. Regrettably, they were never able to reclaim the stolen gear.\n"I am hoping to get my accordion back one day," says de Man. \nNRC, which, as a band has been through several different incarnations over the years including a five-piece country band and a four-piece Americana rock group, has been with its current lineup for the past two and half years. The present duo includes de Man and Terri Onstad, who plays cello, guitar, electric bass and sings. \nThe band's name derives from the fact that a majority of the world's largest cities have a river running through them or at least nearby. "Rivers give a city its character and soul," says de Man. "Atlanta has no river." \nWhile artists ranging from Bob Dylan to Neil Young and Willie Nelson have had an influence on NRC's folk rock style, de Man claims that NRC is not your typical folk rock band. \n"There is lots of energy in every one of our performances. We have a punk-rock approach to playing that can be fast and furious at times, so we can't match up with most folk bands," says de Man. \nFurther discussion with de Man reveals an array of bands that have had an influence on NRC's sound and live performances. "The Cure, Beck, the Rolling Stones, the Clash, Dead Kennedys, the Pixies," according to de Man, are all bands that he loves and respects. \nOnstad says that the cello and the vocal harmonies set NRC apart from traditional folk rock acts. "The arrangements are lush and kind of different. Plus it's such strong songwriting, and we sing about stuff that's dark and disturbing," she adds. \nPresently on tour throughout the country and going as far west as San Francisco, NRC is no stranger to the Bloomington area, having played at the Upland Brewery several months ago. \n"I have always loved [Bloomington]. Great beer, great food, great people, very laid back," says de Man. "It's just a great city overall." \nAdam Goldsmith, head of booking at Upland Brewery, has heard the band several times both live and on the local radio station 92.3 FM WTTS, and he likes what he has heard. \n"They are pretty good. They have kind of a country, folk, storytelling style. Their lyrics are like narration," says Goldsmith. \nGoldsmith had a chance to sit down and chat with the band at its previous Bloomington performance, and one aspect that really stuck with him was how personable de Man and Onstad were toward him.\n"They are very down to earth, very friendly," says Goldsmith. "I'm sure they make enough to get by, but they just like performing and getting their name out."\nBased on the different types of venues NRC has played, it is obvious that this duo wants nothing more than to play music and reach as wide of an audience as possible. \n"We have played everywhere from coffee houses to 300 people rock clubs and everywhere in between," says de Man. \nThough they do enjoy living the life on the road and playing around the country, NRC does have some long term goals, which are not necessarily the typical rock star dreams of success, money and MTV. \n"We plan on finishing up our next record, hopefully by the end of this year," says Onstad. "We are also in the process of shopping for a record label." \nWhile over time and through touring NRC has managed to increase its fan base, popularity in itself is not always enough to secure a record deal. "We are just sending our stuff to smaller record labels," says de Man. "No Sony or anything like that." \nWhen asked what they would do if they were asked to make a video for MTV's "Total Request Live," both de Man and Onstad had to think twice. \n"I don't know. As long as we've got control," says Onstad. "Really, moderate success is all I would really care for. It's more important to me no matter what happens to keep the music fresh, not necessarily radio-friendly." \nKatie Schwartz, a recent IU graduate, heard about NRC on a local radio station and is looking forward to the live performance. \n"They sounded really good," says Schwartz. "I mean I don't know anything about music, but it sounded different than a majority of stuff on the radio, and it was rocking. I definitely want to hear them live."\nNRC is a band that is unlike anything out there today. These musicians truly love to play and guarantee an amazing performance on any given night.\n"One night our opening band didn't show up," says de Man. The club owners didn't know what to do, so NRC solved the problem. "We just played all night," says de Man. "And it was awesome."\nNo River City will be performing on Saturday, June 5 at the Upland Brewery, 350 W. 11 St., in Bloomington. Admission is free, and the show will start at 9 p.m. Contact the Upland Brewery at (812) 336-BEER.\nFor more information about the band, visit www.norivercity.com.