Monday, July 18, 2011

Young Austin

I was planning on doing an extensive interview with fifteen-year old Austin Young, but after his performance yesterday at Arvada, CO’s Blues and BBQ Festival, it can’t wait. He’s just that good.

With sixteen-year old Noah Mast on bass, and Austin’s father, Tim, on drums, Young Austin and No Difference are becoming one of the area’s more sought-after bands. And with damn good reason. Before I continue, here is a paragraph from his bio:

"...Austin Lee Young, a Colorado native, has been described by some as being a “phenom” guitar player. His youth and energy lend to his own style of music which he calls “Texandrix Blues”. At 15 years old he exudes unbelievable passion and displays electrifying musicianship in his performances. His inspirations span the likes of Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, Albert King, Eric Clapton, Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Tim Young, and Ted Johnson..."

Although the guitar is his instrument of choice, Austin is able to participate in any jam on the drums, bass guitar, and keyboards. His stage presence and relationship that he builds with audiences can only be described as “crowd pleasing”.

Crowd pleasing, indeed. I’ve been watching his talent develop for about three years now, and yesterday was the most electrifying performance of his that I’ve seen to date. He dedicated Muddy’s “Honey Bee” to me, and he tore up the long solo. To shreds. Not only would Muddy have been proud, I know his mentor and recent Pinetop Perkins Foundation Masterclass Workshop teacher, Steady Rollin’ Bob Margolin, would have been as well.