II BIG

A mainstay on the Northern California music scene since 1994, II BIG has been through various personnel changes over the years, but the original vision of founder and drummer Ken Ingels has never wavered—these guys come to rock! Over the course of hundreds of gigs, II BIG has opened for a veritable who’s who of classic rock: Foghat, Blue Oyster Cult, Loverboy, Grand Funk Railroad, Joe Walsh, REO Speedwagon, Ted Nugent, Jeff Healy, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Styx.Whether they’re playing a smoky little bar in their hometown of Ukiah or before 5,000 opening for legendary rockers in the outdoor theatre of Konocti Harbor Resort and Spa in Kelseyville, the dynamic fivesome puts on a show worthy of their status as regional legends.The vibe was more AC/DC and Van Halen-like in the early days with the original members, but since the Hansen Brothers, singer and guitarist Aubrey and keyboardist, guitarist and co-lead vocalist Tom, joined in the early 2000s, II BIG has drawn crowds from miles around to hear a sound that Aubrey calls “Brand New Classic Rock.” The band is huge on the festival, fair and rodeo circuit, playing everywhere from the Bay Area to Reno and Eureka, where they recently played the Live at the Boardwalk series.“Although our audience seems to be made up of people of all ages, we’re most popular with those folks who grew up with the sounds of classic Eagles, Bob Seger and ZZ Top,” says Ingels. “When we play live, we mix in some covers with our originals, anything from Jim Croce to Eddie Money and Marshall Tucker, but whatever we’re doing, Aubrey puts a boogie on everything he plays. We’re always out there having a blast.”“Each individual member of is truly an artist in his own right,” says Ingels. “Their other specialties in life tie in perfectly with the artistry they bring to the band. But music is truly our sanctuary, and when we’re not out playing, we’re enjoying the creative energy we create in the studio. It’s just very enjoyable hanging out with these guys. When we say it’s ‘Brand New Classic Rock,’ essentially it’s about carrying forward the rich legacy of that classic sound everyone knows and loves.”All of II Big’s releases, including Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now, Like It II Much, II Big For The Radio and Sound Of The Highway, are available via outlets like CD Baby , Amazon and The Orchard . The band also has its entire catalog of over 100 songs on iTunes .II BIG is produced by Tony Saunders. He produced, played and arranged on the Face in the Glass CD.Larry Batiste and Tony Saunders did the song Baby Come Back for II BIG. Baby Come Back is on the Mendocino Town remix CD by II BIG.
music-reviewer.com review: II Big, Face In The Glass
(Russian River Records)You may not have heard of II Big. If you haven’t you might be surprised to discover that Face in the Glass is their eighth release. II Big is a working band, having toured with rock icons from the 1970s such as Foghat, journeyman bands that at one point filled arenas and can still get ass in the seat on a regular basis. II Big has been selling its CDs off of bandstands and the like for near nigh a decade and doing fairly well at it --- when they started I doubt that they ever thought that doing so would become the music industry model for the 21st Century --- and Face in the Glass will undoubtedly please those folks who have been following them for lo these many years.The subtitle of Face in the Glass is “Brand New Classic Rock,” a statement which I didn’t really get until the third or fourth time through this disc. I think of “classic rock” as late 1950s, early 1960s music, The Drifters, Eddie Cochran, The Beatles, Fats Domino, The (early) Rolling Stones. Of course, depending on your age, that definition, fluid in any event, is going to change. II Big aims its classic rock definition at a period a bit later than I would. Accordingly, what you get in Face in the Glass is a bunch of original tunes and one cover (Wooden Ships by Crosby Stills & Nash, as well as less famously recorded by Jefferson Airplane), through a pre-Michael McDonald Doobie Brothers filter with, perhaps, a pinch of Alabama thrown in. To their credit, Wooden Ships is not the best track on the CD. That honor could be given to Pack of Wolves (a subtle smack at collection agencies and telephone solicitors), Vegas, or the title track. This isn’t boogie music or metal; it’s more of a mid-road jam, some of which will get you on your feet without necessarily having to break a sweat. It’s pleasant --- there’s really not a bad track on the disc --- but alas, there’s nothing especially memorable either. You can listen to all of Face in the Glass without wanting to turn it off, but by the end of the CD you might have a problem remembering any particular song over another.My problem, I guess, is that I heard Listen To The Music a time or two too often on the radio. Listen To The Music by The Doobies was the Susudio of the 1970s; you could turn on the radio day or night and hear it over and over and over. And, unfortunately, a lot of Face in the Glass sounds like “Listen” - era Doobies. It sounds better, for the most part; but it still sounds like it. A lot of folks might say, “Well hey, what’s wrong with that?!” to which I say, “Well, nothing, really. What ever works.” And it works well for II Big. There’s nothing here that will wake you up and lift your soul; however, there’s a fairly large audience of folks out there who like there music gently shaken and stirred, and I would direct them, unhesitatingly, to Face in the Glass.