Short Form BioOver the last decade, Ryan Curtis has made a name for himself as a songwriter not easily packaged into any specific genre. He’s bounced almost seamlessly from folk and bluegrass to rockabilly, blues, and vintage rock n’ roll. Never to be pinned down, his latest release and solo debut, Rust Belt Broken Heart is steeped in the kind of vintage twang more common in a 1960s honky tonk, than a modern club. Ryan’s songs are usually about life’s harder-learned lessons, featuring picaresque heroes to whom he gives a very personal feel. His new record dives deep into the different styles of country and western while telling tales from his youth in the Midwest from Michigan to Illinois. The gravelly voice of the Michigan-born, Boise-based singer has been praised on KEXP and earned acclaim from the likes of No Depression and Saving Country Music. He's set to release his second album, Ain't Ever Easy this July on American Standard Time Records. In the meantime, you can catch Ryan and his band out on the road week in and week out bringing their unique brand of high desert country blues to the dives and haunts of the great American West and beyond.
Ain't Ever Easy -Album Preview
|
Social Media LinksAmerican Standard Time Records Bandcamp
Video Previews for Ain't Ever Easy
|
Previously Released Videos from Rust Belt Broken Heart
Press Photos
"Rust Belt Broken Heart" Press
Album Review - Saving Country Music
"All Alone" Video Premiere - Americana Highways
Album Review - Twangville
Interview & Album Review - Tennessee Star
Album Review - Country Note
Album Review & Interview - Boise Weekly
Interview & Album Preview - Treasure Valley Podcast
"The Hideaway" Video Premiere - American Standard Time
"All Alone" Single Premiere and Album Reviw- Nanobot Rock
Album Review - Americana Highways
Album Review - Orange Flag Music
"All Alone" Video Premiere - Americana Highways
Album Review - Twangville
Interview & Album Review - Tennessee Star
Album Review - Country Note
Album Review & Interview - Boise Weekly
Interview & Album Preview - Treasure Valley Podcast
"The Hideaway" Video Premiere - American Standard Time
"All Alone" Single Premiere and Album Reviw- Nanobot Rock
Album Review - Americana Highways
Album Review - Orange Flag Music
The Weary Times Press & Interviews
"Why Are You So Lonely" Video Premiere & Album Review - American Standard Time
KEXP Music That Matters Podcast Featuring "Hard Times"
The Weary Times Album Review- The Northwest Music Scene
Interview & Live Show Photo Feature - Music Mondays 208
"I Can Tell" Song Premiere - Americana Highways
"Best For You" Video Premiere - Americana Music Show
Album Review and Interview - Boise Weekly
Album Review: The Blues and Roots Music Blog
Interview & Album Feature - Idaho Mountain Express News Paper
Album Review - In My Room Music Blog
Piece of Mind -Single Premiere and Review: Nanobot Rock
Hard Times Video Premiere: Nanobot Rock
KEXP Music That Matters Podcast Featuring "Hard Times"
Best Debut Roadhouse Blues Records of 2019 - Benveeblues.com
2019 Top Ten Albums - In My Room Music Blog
KEXP Music That Matters Podcast Featuring "Hard Times"
The Weary Times Album Review- The Northwest Music Scene
Interview & Live Show Photo Feature - Music Mondays 208
"I Can Tell" Song Premiere - Americana Highways
"Best For You" Video Premiere - Americana Music Show
Album Review and Interview - Boise Weekly
Album Review: The Blues and Roots Music Blog
Interview & Album Feature - Idaho Mountain Express News Paper
Album Review - In My Room Music Blog
Piece of Mind -Single Premiere and Review: Nanobot Rock
Hard Times Video Premiere: Nanobot Rock
KEXP Music That Matters Podcast Featuring "Hard Times"
Best Debut Roadhouse Blues Records of 2019 - Benveeblues.com
2019 Top Ten Albums - In My Room Music Blog
Curtis/Sutton & The Scavengers Press & Interviews
No Depression: "Whiskey Rain" Album Review
Audio Hammock Podcast (Curtis/Sutton discussion starts: 53:55)
American Standard Time : Song & Video Review
Nanobot Rock: Album Review 2017
Northwest Music Scene : Album Review
Ruta 66 (Spain) Interview
Rootsy (Sweden): Whiskey Rain Album Review
American Standard Time: EP Reveiw
AMADEUS MAGAZINE: Interview and EP Release article
Idaho Statesman: EP Reveiw
Nanobot Rock
Audio Hammock Podcast (Curtis/Sutton discussion starts: 53:55)
American Standard Time : Song & Video Review
Nanobot Rock: Album Review 2017
Northwest Music Scene : Album Review
Ruta 66 (Spain) Interview
Rootsy (Sweden): Whiskey Rain Album Review
American Standard Time: EP Reveiw
AMADEUS MAGAZINE: Interview and EP Release article
Idaho Statesman: EP Reveiw
Nanobot Rock
2023 Tour Schedule
January 13th 2023 - Whiskey's (Ketchum, ID)
January 14th 2023 - Sun Valley Resort- Apres at Warms Springs Lodge (Ketchum, ID)
March 3rd & 4th – Silver Dollar (Jackson Hole, WY)
March 10th – Neurolux (Boise, ID)
March 16th – Laurelthirst (Portland, OR)
March 17th – Labor Temple (Astoria, OR)
March 23rd 24th – Treefort (Boise, ID)
April 22nd – 10 Barrell Brewing 10 Year Anniversary (Boise, ID)
April 28th & 29th – Pengillys Saloon (Boise, ID)
May 12th – Red Dog Saloon (Pioneer Town, CA)
May 14th – The Echo (Los Angeles, CA)
May 18th – Apple Blossom Festival (Payette, ID)
June 2nd - Private Event (Ketchum, ID)
June 8th – Carols Pub (Chicago, IL)
June 9th – The Hideout (Chicago, IL)
June 10th – Conflux Brewing Anversery Party (Portland, MI)
June 16th & 17th – Mountain Village (Stanley, ID)
June 20th – Sumer Soulstice Festival (Ketchum, ID)
June 22nd – Sawtooth Valley Gathering (Stanley, ID)
July 5th - Record Exchange (Boise, ID)
July 6th – Mahoney’s (Belview, ID)
July 7th – Sawtooth Hotel (Stanley, ID)
July 8th – Record Release Party @ The Neurolux (Boise, ID)
July 12 –Announcement coming soon (Boise, ID)
July 13-15th - Cave Creek Ramble (Trout Lake, WA)
July 19th – TBD (Chicago, IL)
July 20th Sounds of Summer Concert Series (Grand Rapids, MI)
July 21st – Jacobs Farm (Traverse City, MI)
July 22nd &23rd – Announcement coming soon (Interlochen, MI)
July 28th – Dukes (Indianapolis, IN)
July 29th – TBD (Detroit, MI)
July 30th- Coyote Crossing (Cadillac, MI)
August 18th - Bad Bar (Seattle, WA)
August 19th Announcement coming soon (San Juan Island, WA)
September 2nd-3rd Announcement coming soon (Kuna, ID)
September 21st – Downtown Sound (Nampa, ID)
September 22nd-24th – Announcement coming soon (Boise, ID)
September 30th – Harvest Festival (Caldwell, ID)
Past Dates (2022)
February 4th 2022- Pengillys Saloon (Boise, ID)
February 5th 2022- Whiskey's (Ketchum, ID)
February 11th 2022- Tractor Tavern (Seattle, WA)
February 18th 2022 - Lowman Inn (Lowman, ID)
February 19th 2022 -Dirty Shame - (Crouch, ID
March 4th & 5th 2022 - Silver Dollar - (Jackson, WY)
March 18th 2022 - Gold Mine Grill & Saloon - (Idaho City, ID)
March 23rd- 27th 2022- Treefort Music Fest - (Boise, ID)
April 9th 2022 - Depot Bench Fest - (Boise, ID)
April 14th 2022 - The Olympic - (Boise, ID) Supporting Them Coulee Boys
April 15th 2022 - Foresters - (McCall, ID)
April 16th 2022 - John's Alley - (Moscow, ID)
April 30th 2022 - Aaron Golay's birthday Fest - (Mountain Home, ID)
May 14th -2022 - Whiskey Jacks - (Ketchum,ID)
May 20th 2022 - Pengillys Saloon - (Boise, ID)
May 27th-30th 2022 - Northwest Folk Life Festival - (Seattle, WA)
May29th 2022 - Tractor Tavern - (Seattle, WA)
June 5th 2022 - Music on The Water (headliner) - (Boise, ID)
June 4th 2022 - McCleary's State Street - (Boise, ID)
June 5th 2022 - St. Chappell Winery Open Air Concert Series - (Caldwell, ID)
June 10th & 11th 2022 -Nor East'r Music Festival - (Mio, MI)
June 14th 2022 - Montrose Saloon - (Chicago, IL)
June 25th- 2022 - Neurolux (Double Bill w/ Andrew Shepard)- Boise, ID
June 28th- 2022 - Tuesdays on the Creek ,supporting Rob Leines (Caldwell, ID)
June 29th-2022 - Morrison Center's Neighborhood Concert Series- (Boise, ID)
July 12th-2022 - Ponderosa Center Concert Series - (McCall, ID)
July 21st 2022 - Mahoney's (Belview, ID)
July 22nd 2022 - Newpark Monthly Concert Series - (Park City, UT)
July 23rd 2022 - Brick House - (Twin Falls)
July 30th- Boone & Crockett - (Milwaukee, WI)
July 31st - Montrose Saloon - (Chicago, IL)
August 4th - Coyote Crossing - (Cadillac, MI)
August 5th - Jacob's Farm - (Traverse City, MI)
August 6th - Private Show - (West Branch, MI)
August 18th 2022 - Stanley Street Dance - (Stanley, ID)
August 19th & 20th 2022 - Kasino Club - (Stanley, ID)
August 26th 2022 - Foresters - (McCall, ID)
August 27th 2022- Return to Riverside Fest ( Potlach, ID)
September 2nd 2022 - Redfish Lake - (Stanley, ID)
September 3rd 2022 - Bogus Basin Music on the Mountain Series - (Boise, ID)
September 4th 2022 - Hermit Music Festival - (Kuna, ID)
September 10th 2022 - Idaho Homegrown Country Fest (Kuna, ID)
September 17th 2022 - Hyde Park Street Fair (Boise, ID)
September 23rd 2022 - Flipside Fest - (Garden City, ID)
September 30th, October 1st - Silver Dollar Bar (Jackson, WY)
September 26th, 2022 - VAC- Suporting Vince Neil Emerson (Boise, ID)
November 10th, 11th, 12th - Freakout Fest (Seattle, WA)
November 19th 2022- Olympic Venue- Suporting Laney Lou & The Bird Dogs (Boise, ID)
November 25th 2022 - Pengilly's Saloon (Boise, ID)
December 14th 2022 - The Owl (Chicago, IL)
December 19th 2022 - Californa Clipper (Chicago, IL)
December 22nd 2022 - Carol's Pub (Chicago, IL)
January 14th 2023 - Sun Valley Resort- Apres at Warms Springs Lodge (Ketchum, ID)
March 3rd & 4th – Silver Dollar (Jackson Hole, WY)
March 10th – Neurolux (Boise, ID)
March 16th – Laurelthirst (Portland, OR)
March 17th – Labor Temple (Astoria, OR)
March 23rd 24th – Treefort (Boise, ID)
April 22nd – 10 Barrell Brewing 10 Year Anniversary (Boise, ID)
April 28th & 29th – Pengillys Saloon (Boise, ID)
May 12th – Red Dog Saloon (Pioneer Town, CA)
May 14th – The Echo (Los Angeles, CA)
May 18th – Apple Blossom Festival (Payette, ID)
June 2nd - Private Event (Ketchum, ID)
June 8th – Carols Pub (Chicago, IL)
June 9th – The Hideout (Chicago, IL)
June 10th – Conflux Brewing Anversery Party (Portland, MI)
June 16th & 17th – Mountain Village (Stanley, ID)
June 20th – Sumer Soulstice Festival (Ketchum, ID)
June 22nd – Sawtooth Valley Gathering (Stanley, ID)
July 5th - Record Exchange (Boise, ID)
July 6th – Mahoney’s (Belview, ID)
July 7th – Sawtooth Hotel (Stanley, ID)
July 8th – Record Release Party @ The Neurolux (Boise, ID)
July 12 –Announcement coming soon (Boise, ID)
July 13-15th - Cave Creek Ramble (Trout Lake, WA)
July 19th – TBD (Chicago, IL)
July 20th Sounds of Summer Concert Series (Grand Rapids, MI)
July 21st – Jacobs Farm (Traverse City, MI)
July 22nd &23rd – Announcement coming soon (Interlochen, MI)
July 28th – Dukes (Indianapolis, IN)
July 29th – TBD (Detroit, MI)
July 30th- Coyote Crossing (Cadillac, MI)
August 18th - Bad Bar (Seattle, WA)
August 19th Announcement coming soon (San Juan Island, WA)
September 2nd-3rd Announcement coming soon (Kuna, ID)
September 21st – Downtown Sound (Nampa, ID)
September 22nd-24th – Announcement coming soon (Boise, ID)
September 30th – Harvest Festival (Caldwell, ID)
Past Dates (2022)
February 4th 2022- Pengillys Saloon (Boise, ID)
February 5th 2022- Whiskey's (Ketchum, ID)
February 11th 2022- Tractor Tavern (Seattle, WA)
February 18th 2022 - Lowman Inn (Lowman, ID)
February 19th 2022 -Dirty Shame - (Crouch, ID
March 4th & 5th 2022 - Silver Dollar - (Jackson, WY)
March 18th 2022 - Gold Mine Grill & Saloon - (Idaho City, ID)
March 23rd- 27th 2022- Treefort Music Fest - (Boise, ID)
April 9th 2022 - Depot Bench Fest - (Boise, ID)
April 14th 2022 - The Olympic - (Boise, ID) Supporting Them Coulee Boys
April 15th 2022 - Foresters - (McCall, ID)
April 16th 2022 - John's Alley - (Moscow, ID)
April 30th 2022 - Aaron Golay's birthday Fest - (Mountain Home, ID)
May 14th -2022 - Whiskey Jacks - (Ketchum,ID)
May 20th 2022 - Pengillys Saloon - (Boise, ID)
May 27th-30th 2022 - Northwest Folk Life Festival - (Seattle, WA)
May29th 2022 - Tractor Tavern - (Seattle, WA)
June 5th 2022 - Music on The Water (headliner) - (Boise, ID)
June 4th 2022 - McCleary's State Street - (Boise, ID)
June 5th 2022 - St. Chappell Winery Open Air Concert Series - (Caldwell, ID)
June 10th & 11th 2022 -Nor East'r Music Festival - (Mio, MI)
June 14th 2022 - Montrose Saloon - (Chicago, IL)
June 25th- 2022 - Neurolux (Double Bill w/ Andrew Shepard)- Boise, ID
June 28th- 2022 - Tuesdays on the Creek ,supporting Rob Leines (Caldwell, ID)
June 29th-2022 - Morrison Center's Neighborhood Concert Series- (Boise, ID)
July 12th-2022 - Ponderosa Center Concert Series - (McCall, ID)
July 21st 2022 - Mahoney's (Belview, ID)
July 22nd 2022 - Newpark Monthly Concert Series - (Park City, UT)
July 23rd 2022 - Brick House - (Twin Falls)
July 30th- Boone & Crockett - (Milwaukee, WI)
July 31st - Montrose Saloon - (Chicago, IL)
August 4th - Coyote Crossing - (Cadillac, MI)
August 5th - Jacob's Farm - (Traverse City, MI)
August 6th - Private Show - (West Branch, MI)
August 18th 2022 - Stanley Street Dance - (Stanley, ID)
August 19th & 20th 2022 - Kasino Club - (Stanley, ID)
August 26th 2022 - Foresters - (McCall, ID)
August 27th 2022- Return to Riverside Fest ( Potlach, ID)
September 2nd 2022 - Redfish Lake - (Stanley, ID)
September 3rd 2022 - Bogus Basin Music on the Mountain Series - (Boise, ID)
September 4th 2022 - Hermit Music Festival - (Kuna, ID)
September 10th 2022 - Idaho Homegrown Country Fest (Kuna, ID)
September 17th 2022 - Hyde Park Street Fair (Boise, ID)
September 23rd 2022 - Flipside Fest - (Garden City, ID)
September 30th, October 1st - Silver Dollar Bar (Jackson, WY)
September 26th, 2022 - VAC- Suporting Vince Neil Emerson (Boise, ID)
November 10th, 11th, 12th - Freakout Fest (Seattle, WA)
November 19th 2022- Olympic Venue- Suporting Laney Lou & The Bird Dogs (Boise, ID)
November 25th 2022 - Pengilly's Saloon (Boise, ID)
December 14th 2022 - The Owl (Chicago, IL)
December 19th 2022 - Californa Clipper (Chicago, IL)
December 22nd 2022 - Carol's Pub (Chicago, IL)
Long form Bio
Country funk heater “Can’t Take Back” opens Ryan Curtis’ sophomore album Ain’t Ever Easy like a steam train gliding into some high desert station. It sets the tone for the record and bears the strong vintage machinery of Curtis’ “alt-country from the high country” sound. The song lopes in on phaser-laden guitar riffs, classic Wurlitzer keys, and a backbeat that pulses sexier than a breakup song has the right to be. Regret has rarely sounded this cheerful, but Curtis is capable of turning love and loss into dripping hot, powerful songs. Over the last decade, the various threads of country and blues music have become Curtis’ stock-in-trade. With a gravelly growl, he paints cinematic pictures of picaresque characters from the Midwest to the Rockies; down-and-out townies, bar room drifters, forlorn lovers, and resilient loners fill his visionary tales and mournful subject matter he turns into country gold.
Ryan’s albums have a knack for gliding through various sub-genres of American roots music. His first solo record, 2021’s Rust Belt Broken Heart was woven together with a western noir sound soaked in the sorrowful twang of pedal steel. Ain’t Ever Easy, builds on that, but has a more guitar-forward sound, mixing in early 70’s rock n’ roll, (a’ la Sticky Fingers and Exile on Main Street era Rolling Stones), alongside classic 60’s country and honky tonk.
With a dedication to his craft, Michigan-born Curtis has been churning music out of his adopted home of Boise, ID for over a decade. He was a founding member of the gritty duo Curtis / Sutton & The Scavengers before taking an unexpected turn into the blue-eyed soul, and vintage rock of The Weary Times. That band, like many contemporaries, did not survive 2020, which set Curtis on his current solo path. In 2021, he released his solo debut, Rust Belt Broken Heart to critical acclaim on American Standard Time Records. The album, a collection of songs written about the Great Lakes Region, plays like a love letter to his past and has won over fans and critics alike.
As with Rust Belt Broken Heart, Curtis recorded the bones to Ain’t Ever Easy at Enterprise, Oregon’s famed OK Theatre (one of the first-ever movie theaters in the wild west). With engineer Bart Budwig (a great songwriter in his own right) on the controls and a core studio band of Cooper Trail (Desolation Horse), Nevada Sowle, and Tyler McFarlane, he recorded 20 tracks that would eventually be whittled down to the 9 songs on the record. He then added what he calls the “frosting & sprinkles” back in Boise, with the help of many special guests, including Rider Soran (Rider Rolling Thunder and Tylor & the Trainrobbers) on guitar at Luxetone Studios.
Curtis's train may have finally come in on first single “Codependent Heart”, cutting through hazy realizations with telecaster riffs, crooning in harmony “I know it ain’t right, but I come back every night, this codependent heart of mine”. As a songwriter, Curtis has a special gift for barroom introspection, but he lays new track here on what is essentially a happy song about a sad thing, showing crossover capability and radio-ready songwriting skills.
Resilience and character are the themes that fill the songs on Ain’t Ever Easy. On the 3/4 time groove of “Wasted Energy,” Curtis resolves to “trade sorrow, for love and kindness”, putting problems and self-pity into perspective with a tone that dares to be uplifting, giving up some things, to gain peace.
He follows with a song that’s already become a crowd-pleaser out on the road. “Drunk Tank” is a rowdy country rocker drenched in overdrive, ripping slide guitar licks and the bang of a cowbell. The song hints at modern comparisons like the Drive-by Truckers, but has a vintage sound that begs the listener to take the T-tops off the Camaro, crank the 8-track, and barrel off down the highway. In the chorus Curtis laments “There ain’t nothin' cool about wakin’ up in the drunk tank”, and it sounds as if he just woke up there himself.
The classic country and honky tonk sound of “Cactus & Cocaine” and “The Town” certainly help connect the dots to Curtis’s last record. Lyrically both songs follow a similar juxtaposition in a lot of his writing, the celebration of hard living, along with the eventual regret and reflection of the next day’s hangover.
Before the Tom Waits meets spaghetti western vibes of the album closer “Through the Trees”, Curtis sneaks in one last swamp blues rocker, “Good Corn Liquor.” Originally written and performed by Chris Stapleton on the Steel Drivers’ 2010 release Reckless, Curtis’s take on the song takes a wild left turn transforming it from a modern Bluegrass standard to a dancefloor greasin’, soul-soothing, tune all his own.
The full album is out July 14th on American Standard Time Records. Catch Ryan Curtis on tour all summer.
Ryan’s albums have a knack for gliding through various sub-genres of American roots music. His first solo record, 2021’s Rust Belt Broken Heart was woven together with a western noir sound soaked in the sorrowful twang of pedal steel. Ain’t Ever Easy, builds on that, but has a more guitar-forward sound, mixing in early 70’s rock n’ roll, (a’ la Sticky Fingers and Exile on Main Street era Rolling Stones), alongside classic 60’s country and honky tonk.
With a dedication to his craft, Michigan-born Curtis has been churning music out of his adopted home of Boise, ID for over a decade. He was a founding member of the gritty duo Curtis / Sutton & The Scavengers before taking an unexpected turn into the blue-eyed soul, and vintage rock of The Weary Times. That band, like many contemporaries, did not survive 2020, which set Curtis on his current solo path. In 2021, he released his solo debut, Rust Belt Broken Heart to critical acclaim on American Standard Time Records. The album, a collection of songs written about the Great Lakes Region, plays like a love letter to his past and has won over fans and critics alike.
As with Rust Belt Broken Heart, Curtis recorded the bones to Ain’t Ever Easy at Enterprise, Oregon’s famed OK Theatre (one of the first-ever movie theaters in the wild west). With engineer Bart Budwig (a great songwriter in his own right) on the controls and a core studio band of Cooper Trail (Desolation Horse), Nevada Sowle, and Tyler McFarlane, he recorded 20 tracks that would eventually be whittled down to the 9 songs on the record. He then added what he calls the “frosting & sprinkles” back in Boise, with the help of many special guests, including Rider Soran (Rider Rolling Thunder and Tylor & the Trainrobbers) on guitar at Luxetone Studios.
Curtis's train may have finally come in on first single “Codependent Heart”, cutting through hazy realizations with telecaster riffs, crooning in harmony “I know it ain’t right, but I come back every night, this codependent heart of mine”. As a songwriter, Curtis has a special gift for barroom introspection, but he lays new track here on what is essentially a happy song about a sad thing, showing crossover capability and radio-ready songwriting skills.
Resilience and character are the themes that fill the songs on Ain’t Ever Easy. On the 3/4 time groove of “Wasted Energy,” Curtis resolves to “trade sorrow, for love and kindness”, putting problems and self-pity into perspective with a tone that dares to be uplifting, giving up some things, to gain peace.
He follows with a song that’s already become a crowd-pleaser out on the road. “Drunk Tank” is a rowdy country rocker drenched in overdrive, ripping slide guitar licks and the bang of a cowbell. The song hints at modern comparisons like the Drive-by Truckers, but has a vintage sound that begs the listener to take the T-tops off the Camaro, crank the 8-track, and barrel off down the highway. In the chorus Curtis laments “There ain’t nothin' cool about wakin’ up in the drunk tank”, and it sounds as if he just woke up there himself.
The classic country and honky tonk sound of “Cactus & Cocaine” and “The Town” certainly help connect the dots to Curtis’s last record. Lyrically both songs follow a similar juxtaposition in a lot of his writing, the celebration of hard living, along with the eventual regret and reflection of the next day’s hangover.
Before the Tom Waits meets spaghetti western vibes of the album closer “Through the Trees”, Curtis sneaks in one last swamp blues rocker, “Good Corn Liquor.” Originally written and performed by Chris Stapleton on the Steel Drivers’ 2010 release Reckless, Curtis’s take on the song takes a wild left turn transforming it from a modern Bluegrass standard to a dancefloor greasin’, soul-soothing, tune all his own.
The full album is out July 14th on American Standard Time Records. Catch Ryan Curtis on tour all summer.