Blank Labels Live
Bryson Lawrence' vehicle for original music returns to the Iron Horse
Bryson Lawrence’s Blank Labels played a date at the Iron Horse recently and it was my first chance to catch the band live. I’d previously seen Bryson solo and acoustic on several occasions, and also fronting Dirt, his Alice in Chains tribute act, but this performance was a revelation.
I begin with an apology. I have been underselling the music of Bryson Lawrence. I mean, I’ve enjoyed his music a lot, and I’ve said so, but seeing Blank Labels perform helped me understand who Bryson is as a musician in a deeper way.
Lawrence has a youthful voice which, in an acoustic setting, can sound innocent — reminiscent of young Wayne Newton, even — but as the singer in Blank Labels, Bryson’s voice projects a more rock tone and delivery that can approach Geddy Lee levels of ferocity.
Whereas Blank Labels EP — released in 2016 — can sound mainstream and radio-friendly on tracks like Let the Blind Lead the Blind, the similarity to vintage U2 or Coldplay disappears on songs like Open Air, which rocks and gives me strong Southern Rock tingles. The band’s live show swings the needle heavily in that rock direction, and as if to support the theme, Bryson gave his brand new custom Gibson Explorer its maiden voyage on this particular night. It’s a beautiful guitar.
At Bryson’s side all night was bassist Mackey Divine, who is also the bassist for Clint Vines & the Hard Times, and Mackey did not fail to impress. Mackey’s always solid, but this particular performance was the first time I felt like I got to see him really get down on the bass.
Near the end of the show, Blank Labels performed a cover of Good Times, Bad Times by Led Zeppelin and Divine took the opportunity to show us what he’s got. Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones played a masterpiece on the track, and Mackey nailed it in a way that made me go Wooooooo. Make sure you catch that performance if you ever get the chance, and witness a bass showcase.
Angel Perez is the newest member of Blank Labels, and if I’m not mistaken, Bryson said it was only his second show with the band. In truth, there seemed to be some nerves present at the beginning of the show, but within a song or two, Angel was comfortable and ripping it up.
Angel played both a Stratocaster and a custom build Telecaster-style guitar that I saw, and his leads stood out as razor sharp and technical; I dare say brash. Angel is not afraid to get way up the neck and blast you with blazing fast high notes. I’m looking forward to seeing Angel play in the future.
When I caught up with Bryson after the show, I told him “That was the show I needed to see all along,” and what I meant by that was, the acoustic shows are cool, and Dirt is a lot of fun for Alice in Chains fans, but Blank Labels rocks. It rocks because of Bryson’s strong songwriting, and Mackey’s reliable bass, and Angel’s guitar wizardry, but more than anything, it rocks because of the drumming of Mike Hardison.
I’d met Mike before, and his reputation preceded him on the drums, but I’d never seen him perform. I was not prepared.
Mike gave the most physical performance on the drums I have seen in Wichita Falls thus far. Hardison is a technically proficient drummer with a flair for lightning-fast fills delivered as if no effort was involved.
I ran into Mike as I was walking out and I told him what I just told you, that it was an incredible, physical performance, and he looked at me as if he didn’t know whether to believe me. He looked over at Michael, one of the bouncers, and Michael said something to the effect of “You do beat the hell out of those drums, man,” and it was an understatement.
Mike Hardison and Mackey Divine make a killer rhythm section and I’ll be checking it out in the future, every chance I get.
Bryson told me Blank Labels is working on music and hoping to record some new stuff in the near future with the band’s current lineup. Until then, I’m listening to Open Air on repeat. Also, I’m following Blank Labels on Spotify and I would recommend you do the same, on whatever platform you prefer.
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