It's always an honor to feature a valley band, especially one that is trying to break into the national music scene. Returning to the Wood River Valley after months of touring, the Hailey-based band Finn Riggins will play Whiskey Jacques' on Saturday, Jan. 12, with another valley favorite, the Damphools.
Cameron Bouiss, Lisa Simpson and Eric Gilbert make up the Finn Riggins trio, which released its CD "A Soldier, A Saint, An Ocean Explorer" in November, and followed it up with an East Coast tour.
"We are all very excited about it," Gilbert said. "We did 35,000 miles in 2007 and hit at least 31 states. We are playing a lot and the music has been really well received."
Gilbert said he was very pleased about the amount of air time "A Soldier, A Saint, An Ocean Explorer" has received from college and independent radio stations. Band members say they look forward to returning home to Hailey, but will return to touring on the East Coast in March. In the meantime, Finn Riggins plans to play a few shows around the valley as well as to work on new material.
"We are looking forward to 2008 to be a really exciting year for us," Gilbert said. "We are signing up for summer music festivals as well as putting more tours together."
In addition to radio play, Finn Riggins also received a good review from the College Music Journal, a recognized and leading publication for new music reviews.
"I am flattered that 'A Soldier, A Saint, An Ocean Explorer' has been picked up by college radio, and the fact that CMJ has given us the time of day is very exciting," Gilbert said. "I think we are just excited people like it."
All shows at Whiskey Jacques' begin at 10 p.m., with tickets available at the door. For a complete listing of music events in the valley, see the Music, Dance and Theater section of the Calendar on Page C9.