Lately I’ve wanted to get out to a few more shows in town. This is something that I used to enjoy doing a lot but I haven’t been able to do as much recently due to my work schedule. So I made a goal for myself to see at least one show a month and I feel like that’s attainable. One that I’m excited about later this month is Joshua James at the Grey Eagle, but today I wanted to share my review of a local band that recently played at the Lexington Avenue Brewery called Dem Nugget Boys.
Dem Nugget Boys is one of the best acts floating around Asheville. Formed in 2012 by college friends Justin Neese and Devin Entmacher, DNB is best described as a satirical rap group. I know what you’re probably thinking; “How could these guys be any good? Clearly they are two white guys in thrift store clothes from Asheville.” And to that I would respond, “Get with the times. It’s 2013 and one of the most popular songs on the radio is called Thrift Shop and it’s by a white guy from Seattle.”
According to Justin Neese, though, DNB thrives on these low expectations. “People don’t know what to expect,” he says. “They see two white guys with a silly rap name and they don’t expect much. But then we come out, drop some beats, and get people excited. By the end of the show the energy in the room is usually off the charts.”
Neese and Entmacher are brilliant in this way. They read the crowd well and work the energy in the room. Neese’s description above is spot on with my experience with the band. I really didn’t know quite what to think before going to the show. I was primarily there to support some friends and didn’t have high hopes for the bands that were playing, but by the end of the show I was definitely a DNB fan.
Lyrically these guys can be compared to Lonely Island. They use that same sort of clever silliness but give it a uniquely Asheville twist. One of my favorite songs of the night was Asheville State of Mind, which, as you might guess, is a parody of Jay-Z’s popular Empire State of Mind. Some sample lyrics include:
DE: “And you know the tourists come in the fall to see the leaves”
JN: “Pretty trees mother$&#@*s”
DE: “Yeah, gets real colorful up in this b!$%*…”
But even if you’re not from Asheville you can appreciate the well-crafted rhymes and methodical beats of DNB. They seem to draw influences from a wide variety of sources ranging from the Libyan revolution to Dunder-Mifflin to farmers’ markets – and that’s just one song.
Unfortunately, Dem Nugget Boys won’t be playing another show in Asheville for a while. Co-founder Devin Entmacher recently relocated to Los Angeles to pursue other interests, but the band is not necessarily done. According to Neese, the two remain in close contact and plan to collaborate more in the future.
In the meantime, you can get your DNB fix via their Myspace page. Plus, you can catch Neese’s other project, SEXY {with local stand-up artist Taylor Rogers}, playing several shows around town this spring.
Until next time.
