The music you heard growing up is a permanent fixture in your memory and your mind, so say scientists. But intuitively, we also know this to be true, especially when that one song comes on. You know the one.
For members of the Austin, Texas-based soul group The Nightowls, the vinyl records they remember spinning on their parents’ turntables were those of the great soul and R&B bands, explained front man Ryan Harkrider. Singing with his family in his youth, whether at home or in worship, was a powerful influence as well, he said.
“Most of us grew up listening to our parents’ record collections,” he said. “And for me, I grew up in the church. My parents were choir directors, so I grew up singing out of the hymnal.”
The soulful influence of gospel certainly steered his tastes, but Harkrider also grew up when ’90s R&B was king. He traced the influences on that music through the decades, from Michael Jackson and Prince all the way back to James Brown and Aretha Franklin.
The Nightowls is a 10-piece band, Harkrider explained, which is very much in the vein of the R&B groups of the late 1950s and 1960s. There’s a horn section and dancing backup singers, and everyone looks sharp, he explained.
“It’s definitely something that people aren’t always used to, people outside the big cities,” he said. “We try to make a big sound, and we’re always dressed to the nines.”
The Nightowls make their first ever concert stop in Santa Barbara County at Standing Sun Wines in Buellton on Aug. 11. The concert is a nice break between their Los Angeles and San Francisco dates, Harkrider said.
The group is on tour promoting their new album, Royal Sessions, a follow up to last year’s Fame Sessions, Harkrider said. The new album is a fitting sequel, but also an assertion of the group’s distinct style, which is still evolving, he explained.
“It’s really our most authentic work to date,” he said. “It’s kind of us waving goodbye to being a ‘retro soul band,’ and just being a soul band.”
The album is named after the historic recording studio where it was cut, Royal Studios in Memphis, Tenn. The Nightowls recorded Royal Sessions over two days, featuring driving rhythms, harmonious vocals, and glossy horn arrangements.
The Royal Studios was an inspiring place for Harkrider and the band, he said, as R&B and soul giants such as Al Green, Ike and Tina Turner, and Buddy Guy all recorded there. Making something old new again always includes a respect for the founders, especially those they grew up listening to, Harkrider explained.
“For us, it’s always important to go to the source when we want to be inspired,” he said. “When you want to talk about R&B and soul, going to the roots and the heart of it, that’s what we love.”
Arts Editor Joe Payne was raised on 1960s rock ’n’ roll and classical music. Contact him at jpayne@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Aug 4-11, 2016.
