Dalton & the Sheriffs

One of the rules of the local rock scene has always been that a band shouldn’t play two local gigs at different clubs within two weeks of each other. The logic goes that it waters down the crowd at both shows. Dalton and the Sheriffs break this law on a weekly basis. One of the reasons they’re able to get away with it is that Dalton and the Sheriffs aren’t exactly part of the local rock scene. These guys are cowboys on the wild frontier of the local country scene.

“We have eight shows scheduled in four days this weekend,” says singer Brian Scully. “I’ve just always believed that if you’re doing your job and working hard and playing what people want to hear and bringing in a crowd, it works out.”

It does indeed seem to be working out. Scully cut his teeth in that aforementioned rock scene for nearly a decade, playing in bands he says you wouldn’t remember. “This band right now is a good eight years of being in bands and making mistakes,” he says. When the legendary local rock radio station WBCN folded in 2009, he had a revelation.



“That was a seminal rock station in the U.S., breaking bands left and right, and I think that when that happened, country filled that void for people, and as that sort of thing was starting to happen across the nation, country really added a lot of rock elements to it,” he says.

Scully found that the narrative songs he had been writing his whole life lent themselves to this more rocking country sound. His voice is definitely closer to a grunge growl than a Tennessee twang. He began playing country songs on an acoustic guitar in a bar in Southie. As he built a following, he was also building a band, which in turn led to building even more of a following as he brought the band to the Sunday shows. Eventually this led to residencies at the Bell in Hand on Thursday nights and at Brighton Music Hall on Friday nights, the latter of which has a capacity of nearly 500.

“The one thing that we do is when we find a place, we build a crowd, and that takes a lot of effort. And sometimes that means playing three hours straight to make sure that if you’ve got 50 people in a bar, no one leaves because you took a break,” says Scully. “We keep waiting for people to tell us they don’t want us to play anymore, and it hasn’t happened. We’ve all been in places where people have told us to go home. So for now, we’re just going to keep showing up.”

Taking a 'Backroad' to stardom

With the amount of gigs per year that Dalton and the Sheriffs play, you’d think the band members wouldn’t need day jobs. However, two of the members have careers that required grad school, and with those careers, they prefer to keep a level of anonymity in their music that a name like Dalton and the Sheriffs provides. (Note: None of the guys in the band are named Dalton, and no, none of them are sheriffs as their day jobs.)

“We just tried to keep the two as separate as possible for as long as possible and it’s getting a little bit harder now because we’re playing a lot more high-profile shows and stuff like that,” says Scully. “There’s nothing that we do that we’re embarrassed by, but it’s just one of those things we try not to highlight.”

One of the things that Dalton and the Sheriffs are highlighting, however, is that starting this spring, they’ll release a single each month, leading up to a release party at the House of Blues this summer. Their most recent single, “Flying Down a Backroad,” just cracked the iTunes country 200 charts in November. - Boston Metro

Please click to view interview - Dirty Water TV

We’re told at a young age that some days will be better than others. And eventually we learn that some days are just straight up legendary. Dalton & the Sheriffs, the versatile country band who have built a reputation for owning every stage they play, from intimate pubs to massive venues usually reserved in these parts for touring acts, are having quite a day, today (May 20). And they’re raising a glass three times to celebrate.

Highlighting the day is the release of their third studio album, We’re Still Here, fueled by the brazenly infectious pop-country euphoria of February single “Better Than OK” and March’s “Wide Awake.” The vibrant nine-track LP was written during a trip to Granite Hill Lodge just in New York State late last year, and recorded at The Halo Studio in Maine with producer Kevin Billingslea.

“We’ve been lucky enough to write and record a ton of music since 2019,” says Dalton & the Sheriffs ringleader and frontman Scully. “What stands out to me about this recording is how collaborative it was from the very beginning. We’ve built up a ton of trust amongst the band members while working together at The Halo. It’s the most fun we’ve ever had making a record and I think it shows.”


Now they take that fun to their natural habitat: The stage. Tonight the band hits The Paradise Rock Club in Boston for the just-announced official release party for We’re Still Here, a last-minute gig made possible by a few postponements (their Tall Ships gig) and cancellations (Eric Krasno at the ‘Dise).

And today also marks the ticket on-sale for the band’s highly anticipated show September 3 at MGM Music Hall in the Fenway, as Dalton become one of the first bands to play the new 5,000-capacity Live Nation venue. It continues a big-room run for the dudes, who last summer held court at the Leader Bank Pavilion in the Seaport — a feat of which very few Boston bands can stake a claim.

A new record; a last-minute release party in a defining room, and a ticket on-sale for one of the newest, and biggest, live music venues in Boston. For Dalton & the Sheriffs, that’s all in a day’s work. They’re still here, after all. Just look up.

DALTON & THE SHERIFFS :: Friday, May 20 at The Paradise Rock Club, 967 Commonwealth Ave. in Boston, MA :: 8 p.m., $10 :: Advance tickets :: Venue page - Vanyaland

September down in the Fenway area is usually pretty crazy — the Red Sox pennant race heats up and captivates the city, the late-summer live circuit music stretches up Lansdowne from House of Blues to Loretta’s Last Call, and the volume of new restaurants and businesses see an uptick in activity with all the students swarming back around Labor Day. Now there’s a new entry into the month’s madness: The grand opening of Boston’s latest new live music venue, MGM Music Hall.

Located in place of a decades-old parking lot just over Fenway Park’s bleachers, MGM Music Hall was first announced in 2018, with a name reveal and groundbreaking ceremony a year later. Now, the “state-of-the-art performing arts center” with a 5,000-seat capacity on the corner of Lansdowne and Ipswich streets has unveiled its first batch of live shows, and it starts with a September 3 show headlined by Boston country locals Dalton & The Sheriffs.

UPDATE: New shows have been added to the MGM calendar, including Godsmack playing a benefit for Scars Foundation & Dana-Farber Cancer Institute on August 27 and Chris Stapleton’s All-American Road Show on August 31 and September 1. Keep it locked to the venue page for the latest.


Other shows on the on-sale calendar include Porcupine Tree (September 14); COIN (September 23); The Gaslight Anthem and Jeff Rosenstock (October 4); Sabaton (October 24); Mt. Joy (October 25); and Måneskin (November 26).

Dalton & The Sheriffs revealed last Friday (April 1) that they will be the first act to play MGM Music Hall — and they don’t take the honor lightly.

“We have to clarify, given the date, that this is not a joke (because it certainly feels too good to be true),” writes Brian Scully on the band’s Instagram. “On Sept. 3, we will be the first band to headline the brand new, 5,000-capacity MGM Music Hall at Fenway Park. For a kid who used to sneak into Fenway, this is the most improbable moment of this improbable journey. They are letting us do our ‘Cheap Seats’ sale on my birthday (April 12). The best seats in the house will be $19.80 in honor of the fact that, somehow, 42 years later, it’s all happening. Thank you for every beer and every sing-a-long. It all adds up to this.”

MGM Music Hall is owned by Fenway Sports Group Real Estate, a subsidiary of Fenway Sports Group, and will be operated in partnership with Live Nation. Booking will be handled by Crossroads Presents, the Live Nation-affiliated and Don Law-managed talent buying agency that books the nearby House of Blues, as well as The Paradise Rock Club, Brighton Music Hall, Leader Bank Trust Pavilion, and other rooms around the city.

The venue’s name comes from a partnership with MGM Resorts International, according to a 2019 statement. “Fenway Park is among the most iconic ballparks in sports, and MGM Resorts is proud to grow our presence there and build on our tremendous partnership with the Red Sox and Fenway Sports Group,” says MGM Resorts CEO and chairman Jim Murren.

The goal of MGM Music Hall is “to create an epicenter for the performing arts community in Boston” by giving local schools, colleges, and other neighborhood organizations a chance to utilize the space. Check out a rendering of the venue below, from 2019: - Vanyaland

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: It’s a damn marvel how Dalton & The Sheriffs can fill any kind of stage, from the boozy corner pub to the big tent under the bright (harbor) lights. This Saturday (June 24), the modern country band and Badge Boys of Boston are back on one of the biggest in town, holding court at Leader Bank Pavilion for a weekend throwdown by the water. Maine’s Toby McAllister and our very own hometown stalwarts Ward Hayden and the Outliers (who we’re also stoked to see get some shine under the tent) are on board to get things started. Last year, Dalton & The Sheriffs released a new record called We’re Still Here, which earned Album of the Year honors at the New England Music Awards and led to a Country Artist of the Year win at the Boston Music Awards. Not a bad haul for a band that stays true to its DIY ethos. Check out video of their 2021 appearance at the Pavilion for a taste of the action.

DALTON & THE SHERIFFS + TOBY MCALLISTER + WARD HAYDEN AND THE OUTLIERS :: Saturday, June 24 at Leader Bank Pavilion, 290 Northern Ave. in Boston, MA :: 7:30 p.m., $25 :: Event page :: Advance tickets - Vanyaland

COUNTRY ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Dalton & The Sheriffs - BMA