Band History
Describe the music you play?
The blues. Actually, we play a mix of American blues, rock, soul and funk. We play around 50 percent original material at our shows. Sometimes we like to just call it American Music.
Where did your band name come from?
In 1990 we started the band and had seven members. Originally we were The Blues Instigators, then we just dropped the Blues part. We are sometimes called Kevin “B.F.” Burt and the Instigators. Kevin does a lot of solo shows. Eric plays with a variety of groups. John has played with Charlie Morgan and Reverend Raven. We also have a side project that we call The Electric Koolaid Trio that features Matt on vocals, Eric and John.
How did you get together?
We all met back at the old Yacht Club Monday night Blues Jam in Iowa City. This year is the 20th year of Kevin, Eric, and Matt playing together — a very long time in local and regional band terms.
What places are you playing these days?
Our favorite places to play are wherever there are people who dig the blues and want to get down. We play clubs and private occasions from here to Louisville, Ky. Over the 20 years we have traveled all around the Midwest and up to Canada and Washington, D.C. But the best gig we ever did was in Memphis at the Blues City Café. We took the stage at
11 p.m., and when we finally stopped to take a set break, we realized it was 4 a.m. and it was time to quit — five hours, no break, no repeated songs and a packed house the whole time.
What goals does the band have?
Just to keep playing as long as we can go. At this point it’s still fun to play and write songs and meet people who have followed us for years, as well as folks who are just seeing the band for the first time.
day
May 22
