Ravinwolf

RAVE REVIEW:
I just saw Ravinwolf perform live for the very first time on Wednesday (March 10th) and it was less than ten minutes into their set the other night that I suddenly REALLY wished I'd seen them the previous week as well (when they were also performing on a Wednesday night at Papa Hemi's Hideaway, in Ketchum) because between the brilliantly-colored tie-dye flag they had affectionately stretched out in one corner of the restarant, the equally eye-catching tie-dye T-shirt (and bandana) that Jamey Bilyeu was wearing onstage AND those often brilliantly-executed guitar riffs that both he and wife Heather were featuring -- not to mention those seriously kick-ass conga drums that Rodney Turner was making verrrry much his own that night in no time at all -- I suddenly felt like I had missed out on some very, very special by NOT seeing Ravinwolf on March 3rd as well.

But whatever I may've missed out on a week before, the March 10th show they gave they other night was positively brimming with high energy and infectious enthusiasm and unceasing respect for their audience (the latter I say because it was a Wednesday full of very popular music-oriented events in Ketchum -- Susan Spelius Dunning, R.L. Rowsey and Zachary Prince having a George Gershwin music night at the Church of the Big Wood; Maria Laura Bustamante & Alejandro Rivas once again dazzling and enchanting their audience there at the increasingly-populated CIRO Market's Wine Lounge; the Paul Tillotson Trio seriously kickin' it once again up at Sun Valley's Duchin Room (with guest NYC drummer Ross Pederson), etc -- and it would've been soooo easy for Ravinwolf to look around at the dozen or so of us there at Papa Hemi's that night, thrown up their hands in exasperation and dejection, and then just sorta phoned it in for the rest of the evening.

But they didn't.

Instead, they played with the sort of unbridled heart and soul and power that the two CDs of theirs I borrowed recently from Hemi's Hideway co-owner Matt Vandernoot only HINT at in many cases. And as the night wore on, they seemed to only get better and more determined than ever to give their small, but loyal audience the (musical) ride of their life -- and that they did!!!

After several classic cover tunes ("Been Through the Desert On a Horse With No Name," "Friend of the Devil," Willie Dixon's "Shake It For Me," Robert Cray's "21"), Ravinwolf then eagerly embarked on a endlessly energetic and inspired series of songs from their own albums ("The Last Cowboy," "Hand In Glove," "Just West of August," "Last Cowboy," "Take Me Away," "Where the Horses Run Free," etc) that left little doubt in ANYONE'S mind there that night why this Seattle-based blues band has managed to survive and thrive for over a decade now, while so many of its contemporaries have indeed fallen by the wayside or otherwise been forgotten about.

And don't be at all surprised when Heather sings stellar lead vocals on "Make Believe" if you don't find yourself closing your eyes at some point (as I did) and wondering if you're not in the presence of now-legendary Heart lead singer Ann Wilson ("Barracuda," "Alone," "What About Love?," "Dreamboat Annie", etc) instead.

Ravinwolf totally slays...

- Sun Valley Online.com - (March, 2010) John Pluntze

After listening to the first half of their set and listening to their CD "Buttons and Freedom", I am eagerly awaiting their Brookings show....Seattle based acoustic musicians Ravin'wolf works magic with just two guitars and dual vocals to defy musical boundaries, switching from gritty blues to rock to country ...Jamey Bilyeu's gravelly voice is a perfect match with his fiery fretwork on the blues based songs. FaeRaven's is no slouch in the guitar department, but her vocals soar---part Anne Wilson, part Grace Slick...their harmonies are stellar..." - Curry Coastal Pilot Review (May 2010) - Scott Graves

"…judging by the songs on their album, they’re not just written, they’re put together and mainly it’s hot…their sturdy but sweet harmonies..." - Tim Moffat

"With over 14 years in the music business Ravinwolf knows a thing or two...they take you someplace new in rock vocals..." - Barbie Hull

"Ravinwolf has found out how to keep themselves alive as a business and still have plenty left to rock the clubs. They also know to rise above the crowd in the music world you have to have your own voice , your own style and your own music...that they do!"

- Tim Moffat

"...bands are nearly as numerous as beetle kill spruce trees <of Alaska>. Ones that can sing in harmony are less common, and ones with enough of their own stuff to put together an album worth listening to, cuts the number further. Add a sense of musical arrangement, a male-female singing duo that sound like they fetched their voices out of the same gene pool and you've got Ravinwolf!" - Homer Alaska News - ARTS

"...they're sooo cool...Rävinwolf is amazing! Rockin' tunes...really cool, quirky harmonies...I'm impressed by Rävinwolf and I'd love to hear more from them in the future..."
- 88.1 The Burg, Ellensburg, WA

...Ravinwolf is the most popular band in the county...extremely creative original music! - Central Washington Univ Student Paper

...their performance was seamless... - Live Music Coordinator

"You hear more in their music then the sounds they make...they're silly good!" - Casey Ruud, Whistle Blower - Old Schoolhouse Brewery, Winthrop, WA