2013 BIG Announcement!

Hey Kettleheads! BKD will have a few major announcements on Jan 1, 2013. This year has been a learning experience for the band and they are taking their new-found direction to greater heights in 2013. The plan is in place...the songs are being written...the shows are being booked. It's all in for BKD and we are almost ready to show you our cards. Almost....

Stay tuned for the BIG announcement on Jan 1st! Until then...Seek out those you love, tell them how much...lean into your community... and have a wonderful and exciting Christmas.

Love & Light...BKD

Let's EAT!

Hey Kettleheads! The Tour starts THIS WEEK! We hope you will come out and join us. We told you we are starting a new tradition where we share a meal with any/all of you on days of shows. Friday is the first of those days! We will be eating at 6PM at Chick-fil-A located at 7333 West Sand Lake Road, Orlando, FL 32819. On Saturday we will be eating at the Nomad Cafe at 6PM located at 2002 South Harbor City Boulevard (US1), Melbourne, FL 32901.

We truly appreciate those of you who are all in. Looking forward to sharing a meal and our lives together. See you this weekend!
- Brant & JT

Give Up or Get Better

"If there’s no viral action on your music, you’re just not good enough. Don’t get mad at the audience, get mad at yourself. Either give up or get better." - Bob Lefsetz

Share and Share a "Like"

Hey Kettleheads! After a few days in we have just over 250 of you that want to be a part of our journey. The good news is that we have almost 300 people "talking about" us here on FB. That means that some of you are sharing us. That is what needs to happen. If everyone of us hypnotized one additional person we'd be at almost 600. We begin our Fall Tour on Friday in Orlando. We will be posting where we will be breaking bread with everyone each day on tour. We encourage you to come out to the restaurants and be part of this community. We have work to do. We will be talking about new music, T-shirt designs, areas to tour and a slew of other stuff that YOU HAVE A SAY IN! That is what community is. We are together in this. Please check our website at www.bigkettledrum.com for tour dates so you can plan on joining us. We can't wait to see you. Love & light...Brant & JT

Open Letter Response...

WOW...the responses we have received from our "open letter" yesterday have been amazing. People reaching out saying come play in our city...we will find a venue, feed you, house you and help promote the show. People sending unsolicited money. People sharing our music on their pages and asking their friends to check us out. This is the type of community that we want to bask in. Everyone putting their heads together and saying lets do this! We don't need record labels, booking agents, and a machine to connect to people who need to hear music that moves them. We simply need YOU! We haven't been this excited about recording and touring in a long, long time. Thank you all for re-igniting our passion to connect and we can not wait to sit down across from you, look you in the eyes and say "Thank You"...just...WOW!

Hitting the Reset Button...

They say you can survive in the current music landscape if you have 1,000 true fans. We are going to put that to the test. You know we don't ever look at anyone as "fans". That is just weird to us. What we do know is that there are a handful of friends that have supported us like family. Those are the relationships we want to foster. We are hoping that our "casual" fans/friends will step up into a deeper relationship with the band and our community.

The fact is that some of you are our family/church/therapists/mechanics/inn keepers and therapists...yes I know we said that twice;) Being a full-time musician requires full-time "fans". Our goal isn't to sell a million records. Our goal is to have some sort of impact on your life. Musically, personally...wherever we can. If you get that and long for community in the truest sense of the word...then tell your friends that want the same. Get off your ass and come out to a show. Come break bread with us and eat a meal before/after we play. Being on the road sucks without that level of interaction. There is too much sacrifice.

Honestly, JT and I are old. LOL. Ancient in music terms. JT knows Jesus...personally...I've seen a picture. It would be so much easier for us to just "retire". But there is a part of us that still believes we have something to say and that there are a few of you out there that want to listen. We look at bands like The Lumineers and long for people to connect to our songs like that. We are tired of being jealous and sitting on the outside saying how much better we think we are. That is bullshit.

So...we have decided to put everything on the line and have an open and honest relationship with you. We want to be the real, broken, compassionate, depressed, optimistic people we are:)

2013 will be the beginning of something incredible or the end of something mediocre. We are cautiously optimistic that we can find the few, the proud, the mar...wait...wrong folks. Leave your swords at home and bring your lives to us so we can share ours with you.

Love you all...
Brant, JT

180 Degrees

FINALLY...GOOD NEWS!!!! Theo has made a 180 degree turn over the last 48 hrs!!! He has had 2 of the most BORING days since we've been here. We can't tell you how exciting that is:) No more bleeding from the stomach! Blood is clearing in his urine! Rash is gone! He has eaten soft food for 2 days! Down to 1 pump! He has slept through the night twice! AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH! My cheeks hurt from smiling...Love you all...so much. Thank you for walking through this with us.

Big Kettle Drum joins Brandi Carlile at the Erase Hate Tampa Bay Festival

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Big Kettle Drum joins Brandi Carlile at the Erase Hate Tampa Bay Festival.

Rockledge, FL - September 30, 2012 - Big Kettle Drum (BKD), the banjo slinging, foot stomping, slide guitar Americana band has joined the line-up at the Erase Hate Tampa Bay Festival in Tampa, FL to be held on November 4, 2012.

Howling guitar riffs over a thumping Samsonite suitcase kick drum has Big Kettle Drum carving it's own niche in the Americana-Blues-Rock landscape.

"We are excited to lend our voice to this great cause," says front man Brant Christopher Menswar. "We jumped at the chance to join Brandi Carlile onstage at Curis Hixon Park and play for the great folks of Tampa Bay."

While their 2012 debut album is finding its way into heavy rotation on playlists around the globe, its their live show that sparks conversation around the water cooler. Passionate performances of their original songs mixed in with BKD arranged covers of everyone from John Lee Hooker to Billy Joe Shaver keep the heads bobbing and the fists in the air. BKD's boot-in-the-face approach has fans of all ages marching to the beat of the Big Kettle Drum.

ABOUT (ERASE HATE TAMPA BAY, INC)
Erase Hate Tampa Bay, Inc. is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation dedicated to making our community embrace a higher level of acceptance and appreciation for each citizen’s individuality. Through civility, kindness and respect for one another, we can make our community a better place to live, raise a family, build a business, and enjoy a long, secure life. Through our events and programs, we bring leaders in education, faith-based organizations, government agencies, and individuals together to promote an appreciation for diversity and cultural sensitivity.

CONTACT:
Grant Gelt
New Sound Artist Management
grant at newsoundmgmt dot com
www.bigkettledrum.com
www.newsoundmgmt.com

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Theo update

Not a good day today. Theo had more bleeding last night and today. They changed most of his meds back to IV so his stomach doesn't have to do any work, including drinking. He is allowed to drink water to take pills, but that's all. Because the two continuous drips for his stomach can't run trough a line with anything else, and becuase they have added more IV meds, and because he keeps having to get more blood, they had to put an IV I his arm to get everything into him on time. Because he's on so many steroids, they had to try 5 times and call in a nurse from another floor to help to get the IV in. Because one of the new continuous meds drastically reduces the body's insulin production, they are checking his blood sugar every 6 hours and have to give him an insulin shot if they are over 200. So Theo feels like because we brought him here to make him better, everything else is going wrong. I can't blame him. Please keep praying for comfort and healing in his body and in his mind and spirit as well.pray for Emi, Brady and I as well. We really had no idea what we were going to have to go through when this all started, and its hard to continuously have something else to deal with every day.

Love you all...

The Journey Continues

Well, today was rough. Theo got up at 5:30 to go to the bathroom and fell. More like slow motion crumpling, but same result. Anyway, it happened again later in the afternoon, but Em was standing next to him, per nurses orders. She wasn't much help because he is bigger than her, but he was talking to him during and he just said he was getting dizzy and then collapsed. They took his blood pressure in bed and it was normal, even bordering on high. Then they had him stand up and took his pressure again and it was ridiculously low. They determined that he was basically passing out when he stood up because his blood pressure was dropping when he was in standing position. They are thinking it is because he was dehydrated, so they stopped his lasics and gave him fluids. Then they gave him 2 units of blood. His hemoglobin wasn't super low, but it was trending downward so they figured he would need it in the next day or two, so that was a better choice to increase his body's volume. They also drew labs to make sure there isn't an infection that the steroids might be masking a fever for.

Anyway, he was pretty scared, but luckily they had done the MRI the night before and it came back clean with no swelling, which is mostly was Theo was worried about. He was feeling much better this evening and had a blast hanging out with Brady.

I am sure they will figure out what is wrong, but I dont know about a Monday release. To be honest, as much as we want out of the hospital, we want to make sure he is really doing well before they let him go. Too many little things keep coming up.

We will know more tomorrow or Monday. Love you all...

BKD FALL 2012 TOUR!

Great news Kettleheads! The BKD fall tour is shaping up nicely with dates confirming throughout Florida. We will be posting the dates and venues as we iron out the details. We will be playing multiple sets each night. This is exciting to us as we have a chance to switch it up with an acoustic set mixed into night that allows us to play songs you've never heard. Hope to see you on the road...Can't wait.

Theo's Battle

Rough day today. Theo was running a fever again and his stomach was still hurting. He threw up again tonight for the first time in a week. I had to leave for a bit to be with a dear friend who was in a bad car accident. God had his hand on her and her unborn baby boy. The baby was born via emergency C-section and both Mom and son are stable.

Even though its been hard to see the light at times on this journey...sometimes God makes sure His power and grace are undeniable. I thank Him for my Nomad family who literally wrapped their arms around people in hospitals today all over the state. I thank Him for continuing to heal my (not so) baby boy and for holding our newest Nomad in His hands today. His grace is more overwhelming than the chaos that was today. We so need that...right now. Love you all... B

Theo Update Graftication.

THEO IS 100% ENGRAFTED!!!!! That means that all of Theo's cells are now the donor cells. This is the news we have been waiting for. We still have a long road ahead but at least we are now positive that the transplant was a success. Theo is in good spirits and outside of some stomach pain from the GVH and ulcer, he is feeling really well. Pray that we get transferred to the Ronald McDonald House on Monday. That will be a huge step on the road to recovery. Love you all...w/  Brant and Emily Schorr Menswar

Theo Update

‎Theo had a really good day today. His white count was 10.77 and his ANC was 8500. Those are about as high as they can get, so now they are going to stop giving him the meds that boost those counts and they will drop a little but then even out on their own. The good thing about stopping the neutrophil (ANC) medicine is that that is the one that can cause the bone pain. He only had a little discomfort today and Tylenol pretty much did the trick.

Almost all of his meds were already switched to pill form this morning, so the only thing running through his line for most of the day was heparin. They are weaning him off of the TPN (intravenous nutrition) and he should be off of that by tomorrow evening. things are really moving forward!

My bud Pw Gopal flew in to spend the weekend with us and brought Theo a sweet '63 Harmony Rocket Electric Guitar! He loved it. Then my pal Shane Winnings stopped by today to give Theo a smock from Iraq that soldiers wear to protect themselves from the sun and sand. Theo put it on and looked like a Camo-Ninja! 

All in all he had a great weekend. Brady comes over in the am to spend the day/night with us so the good times will continue!

Love to you all...
B

Theo update

Theo's white count jumped up to 3.78 today!!!! Woo hoo! That's double yesterday! His counts haven't been over 1.2 since November. (Apparently the normal range is 4.0 to 10.5.) HUGE jump! They took the blood today to run the chimerization labs which is what they use to determine if Theo's bone marrow is 100% donor and none of his. Of course when Dr. Gordon asked Theo if he knew what chimerization is, Theo said, "I know what a Chimera is. The mythical beast that's part goat, part lion and part snake. So, can I have lobster claws? That would be awesome."

The Journey

Waited til tonight to post. Had a really rough day. Theo was really disoriented this morning. The Dr ordered an MRI. It appears that Theo is having an adverse reaction to Cyclosporine causing him to show signs of something called PRES. Theo lost his vision temporarily on two occasions today. One of which caused him to fall in the bathroom. Needless to say, we are scared...Theo is extremely depressed and confused as to what is going on...and we all are just not dealing well at the moment. The Dr and nurses are being great and on top of everything. They have switched his meds and hopefully will reverse the PRES within 48 hrs. 

The whole ordeal just sucks on so many levels...we pray no one ever has to experience this. Theo is tired of being a "poster child" and just wants to be a normal 14 year old. His faith is shaken to its core and he is just so angry and upset. I can't tell you what its like to watch your child suffer like this. We all just want to fast forward to next year when Theo is back to his old self enjoying life. 

Until then...we sit and say it's going to be ok...and can't do a damn thing to help. That just sucks...

The Journey...

We decided to post my family's journey on the blog here so you all can follow along. If you are on Facebook...you probably have already seen these. But if not, this will catch you up:


August 18
The journey continues...Last night Theo was running a fever of 105. They did everything they could to bring it down. Cold wet towels, meds and a liquid cooled pad that he slept on. They have been able to get it down a bit but he has been at 103 most of the day. He also now had a big rash all over his torso. We are hoping that these are the first signs of engraftment. They usually are but this is very early for the process to begin. So tonight they added 3 more drugs and have ordered CT scans to ensure there is nothing out of the ordinary going on. Sucks to watch your kid shivering uncontrollably all day. I woke up this morning and couldn't get out of bed. Threw my neck/back out. Isn't that just frickin great? OK pity party over...Emi went home today to see Brady (who has been sick with a 101 fever) He is feeling better finally. Hoping tomorrow is a better day...we need it.

August 16
It's been the hardest 3 days of the journey thus far. Theo is struggling with a fever, the mouth sores are just so uncomfortable, he is still vomiting once a day or so, he still hasn't eaten and his hair finally fell out tonight. While we prepared for this valley it still doesn't make it easy to walk through it. We know there is a light at the end of this tunnel but we just wish it was closer than it appears. We are now 7 days post transplant and 20 days in total. It feels like months.
Emi and I attended the Grand Opening of the new Bone Marrow Unit at the hospital this evening. It is sponsored by Kids Beating Cancer and is just beautiful. We met the organization's founder, Margaret, who lost her son 20 years ago to the same illness that Theo has. Her determination has allowed families like us to stay in central Florida rather than going out of state to a pediatric bone marrow unit. She is an inspiration and I look forward to helping her in any way I can once we get out of here. The Unit should open officially the first week of Sept and Theo will be the first patient. We found out tonight that he is the 13th pediatric bone marrow transplant recipient at Florida Hospital. Lucky #13.

Even though we are finding it hard to pray at this time while we are watching our son struggle so much...we know we have so many of you that are doing it for us. That is what being a Christian is all about. Doing the hard things when no one asks you to...Thank you for that. Those prayers are building a bridge that will carry us back when this is over.

Love you...B

August 14

It's been a down few days. Theo's spirits are down. This is totally expected and part of the process...but it still sucks to watch him go through it. The mouth sores started today today from all the chemo. Not fun. They are trying to limit his pain. He hasn't eaten for a week so they started a nutrients bag last night. He is down to 130 lbs. We knew this would be the hardest chapter of this journey...taking it day by day...thank you for the continued prayers.

August 9
TRANSPLANT FINISHED! It took way longer than expected...but the entire bag of marrow is now in Theo. His body will freak out a bit over the next week as it tries to engraft into his body, but the big step is completed. Thank you to all who prayed for us today and we ask that you keep praying until we can report the transplant has fully engrafted. Still a long road ahead but we are walking towards the light...

August 9
DAY - 0: TRANSPLANT DAY! "For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God." 1 Peter 1:23 Today my son receives his bone marrow transplant at 10 am. This day holds a special place in our hearts for a couple of reasons. Today would have been my brother-in-law's 36th birthday. He was tragically killed 8 years ago. He was also the person that brought me back to God. It seems only fitting that Theo receives a new life on the day that the person who saved mine was born. Life is so fragile. It is our prayer that today, while so many are praying for us, that you take a minute out of your day and tell someone you love them. Forgive someone you've been holding a grudge against. Make that call to a distant relative or friend. Lay down that burden you've been carrying for so long. Most of all...embrace this life you've been given, hug your family tight and thank God for the love and grace that holds us all together. For everyone that has been praying for us and following Theo's progress...we truly say thank you, we love you and your care for us has been the greatest testament to the love Jesus promises that we've ever experienced. Praise God!

A Note From Big Kettle Drum Lead Singer

A note from Brant:

As a father, it hurts to see Theo in pain. As a man, its frustrating to not be able to "fix" the situation and make it better. In the midst of this struggle, when I am down and out, people with the best of intentions want to do anything and everything to "fix" me. Make me better. Take my mind off the situation at hand. They tell me stories, quote me scripture and just want to be a little light in the darkness.

At this moment, I find it so hard to accept it. As much as being an island is not healthy or the "right" thing to do...somehow the loneliness is comforting. As a songwriter, I have to find solace in these moments. A few weeks back, JT came to visit. I told him how I was feeling. I just wanted to be left alone and let me be sad. I needed to mourn the upcoming process. He played this beautiful riff on the guitar. I started to write exactly what I was feeling. This is what came out...

Please feel free to download the song here: http://t.opsp.in/l07wu

 Listen to it and know that my heart is softening and the love and prayers from all of you are the reason why.

Summer Break

Hey Kettleheads. The band has been on a forced break with the condition of Brant's son and his need for a bone marrow transplant. The transplant is happening August 9 and will keep the band off the road til the end of October. While this is hard for the guys...the life of and their love for Theo is far more important than the tour. We know you all understand. It has forced the band to miss some dates and break commitments to play some festivals. The guys will truly miss playing for you this summer.

The guys are using the time off the road to write for the next album and plan a large tour to happen in the fall of 2012/ spring 2013. Lots of meetings happening...the documentary is being edited...the band is focusing their efforts for a proper release of their debut album...and their songs are being considered for a variety of licensing opportunities.

We hope you have grabbed a copy of their new CD and are enjoying the boot to the face that is BKD. They will be back with even bigger guitar riffs, swampy arrangements and passionate performances before you know it...

Until then...your thoughts, prayers and good vibes for the BKD family are much appreciated.

Tampa St Pete.

Rolling into Tampa for our show at Pegasus Lounge was an adventure.  An hour into our 3 hr drive we blew a tire on the trailer.  No worries we have spare, BAM tire # 2 down.  After finding 2 replacements we were back at it.  Finding our Hotel was "cake"We head off to the gig in the heart of Tampa, load in is 9pm.  We get there and club owner says great your here welcome.  You go on at 12:00.  We can't load in till the band in front of us is done.  3hrs sitting and waiting for some local acts to finish.  We Rocked that little place like it was "the living room" in New York.  The few that were witness to it. LOVED it.
That's what we do.

Today we have the Backline Festival with Tonic, Will Hoge and Michael Tolcher.  Should be a killer day at Williams Park in St Pete.

BKD

Florida Tour

BKD is gearing up for their southern tour through Florida in Mar/April.  Kicking it off March 30th at Pegasus Lounge in Tampa. The  31st is Backline Music festival with Tonic, Will Hoge and Michael Tolcher, followed by April 1st an Acoustic set at Mandarin in St Pete.  Making our way through west coast of Florida through Central Florida and up to North Florida. We're still working on some south Florida dates, and hope to get those confirmed soon.  So take a visit to our FACEBOOK page and Mark your calendars and lets pack out some clubs in Florida. 

BKD

Big Kettle Drum's "Ode to Billy Joe"

Big Kettle Drum covers a great Billy Joe Shaver tune on their upcoming album. Read the article here.

Big Kettle Drum to play Backline Music Festival w/Tonic

Big Kettle Drum (BKD) has signed on to play the Backline Music Festival in St. Petersburg FL on March 31, 2012. BKD will support headliner 'Tonic' at the festival as part of a Southeast swing on their 2012 tour.

Big Kettle Drum to release full-length album

Red Dirt rockers Big Kettle Drum (BKD) have finished their debut full length CD. The 10-track album is a mix of the foot-stomping blues and fist-pumping rock their fans have come to expect. Drawing on influences from the Black Keys and BRMC to Mumford and Sons, BKD has carved its own niche in the southern rock world. The CD will be available this spring.