I’ve been following Andrew Scotchie & The River Rats for the last couple years, and was beyond excited to hear they added my town of Grand Junction, Colorado to their 2019 Summer Out West Tour. They performed at Cruisers, a fantastic little venue, with a roomy bar area, lots of games, and large outdoor patio.
Andrew Scotchie & The River Rats, the band from Asheville, North Carolina, won Mountain Xpress’s Best Of WNC, three years in a row and it’s easy to see why. With their own brand of down ‘n dirty electric funk, it’s difficult to fit this band into just one genre. Their style envelopes several genres, which definitely makes them a crowd-pleaser.
I was fortunate to be able to sit down and talk to Andrew before the show. He was kind, personable and engaging. And the minute he stepped on stage and started shredding his guitar, my mouth dropped to the floor. If you morphed together Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix, the result would be Andrew Scotchie. On top of his stellar guitar skills, Andrew’s voice is pure, passionate, and effortlessly draws you into the song.
Their third, and most recent album release is Family Dynamo. The title, a nod to honor Andrew’s late father who was killed the day before his 15th birthday. “My Dad was our family dynamo,” Andrew said, as he held out his arm to show me his coordinating tattoo. “This album is a tribute to him.”
Rounding out the River Rats are Keith Harry on bass, and Amanda Gardner, sitting in on drums for Eliza Hill. Amanda and Eliza are good friends, and Amanda fills in on tours, while Eliza is in school.
All the members of the River Rats are brilliantly talented and bring a legitimate rock ‘n roll electricity to their live performance.
I have never seen a young man more passionate and driven about music, than Andrew Scotchie. Case in point – Barnaroo. When Andrew was in his teens, he wanted to play at Bonaroo, but he was told he was too young. So, Andrew and his friends started their own festival in a family-owned barn, and called it Barnaroo.
Since it’s inception in 2009, Barnaroo has grown beyond that family-owned barn, and he now gets requests from bands all over the United States. There’s a campground, a food truck, vendors selling goods, and a whole new venue where the musicians perform.
Barnaroo even has its own beer, a product of Hi-Wire Brewing called “Barnabrew.”
Andrew and the band are currently working on a new album, set for tentative release in 2020.
