Innocent Rock for Guilty Pleasures - Venture Rays - News

Hiber Nation 2012

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Hey all! We are hard at work learning new songs and brushing up old songs. We look forward to seeing you at Kahill's in South Hill for St. Patrick's Day. And once April hits, we're off and running for an increasingly busy wedding season. Keep an eye on the Calendar page to see when we'll be near you...

We'd also like to send a huge WELCOME to our latest addition, Scott Harris, on bass guitar/vocals/turbo long hair. And as if his playing, superfluous follicles and general presence hadn't warmed us enough, his lovely daughter drew the lovely picture that now graces the splash page on this here website. AWESOME! So, welcome Scott!

That's all for now... back to work!

-VR

Happy 2012!

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0800

Hello Venture Ray Website Visitor! Happy 2012 to ya. We are very excited about this upcoming year, as we expect it to be our busiest and best to date. We have recently welcomed Dave "Sully" Sullivan on lead vocal duties, and we will soon be debuting a new bassist as well. A little hint as to who it might be: his initials are TBA, and he's cousins with TBD.

Please take a moment to peruse the calendar page to see where & when we'll be playing near you, unless it's a wedding reception, in which case, if you weren't actually invited to the wedding, you can't come. Sorry, we don't make the rules, we just follow them... Otherwise, see you soon!

Best wishes for a happy and prosperous year...

The Venture Rays

PS. Check out this super awesomely nice letter we received from a happy bride (you might have to turn your head, or your computer). Thanks Marija & Mike! Congratulations again!

Winding Down, Gearing Up

Sat, 13 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0700

Hi all - The band is enjoying a much needed lull as summer winds down. But we'll be back at it this fall, with gigs that take us from Maryland to Georgia. Also, look for us to return to The Otterhouse (Fredericksburg) and Kahill's (South Hill) later this year. And we've already begun booking for 2012, so if you're looking that far ahead, please don't wait to get in touch! Click the Contact/Booking tab to the left for all related booking info...

Thanks for stopping by, we hope to see you soon...

Venture Ray St. Patrick's Day!

Tue, 08 Mar 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Please come join us at The Republic (www.therepublicrva.com) on St. Patrick's Day (March 17th, 2011)... Drink some beer. Listen to some tunes. Kiss the Donny Stone. We will be debuting some new tunes, including some Irish-appropriate numbers... Come celebrate with us!

~VR

Almost Not Winter Anymore 2011

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 00:00:00 -0800

Hello All - As the days slowly get longer (summer solstice, here we come), we wanted to duck in to say 'thanks' for 2 great shows these past few weeks (The Republic here in Richmond and Kahill's in South Hill). And we are very much looking forward to our return visit to The National (FEB 18th - like, 2 days from now). After that, it's off to DC next week for a private function, and then back to The Republic on March 17th for a very VR St. Patrick's Day celebration. That show is free, and we'll play 7-10 pm. Shepherd's Pie and Guiness for all our friends...

see you soon!

Yule Tide Greetings, Y'all!

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Now that the days are shorter and the weather has turned cold, we here at VR headquarters would like to wish you and yours a splendid holiday season.

The band will be at The Republic (www.therepublicrva.com) on JAN 25th to help you muddle through your post-holiday doldrums.

And we're playing a very special show on FEB 25th at The National (www.thenationalva.com) with our good friends The Word Brown and The Velvet Marias. More on that to come!

That's all for now. Be well, stay warm!

like an overstuffed stocking oozing with holiday love,
the venture rays

It's Almost HALLOWEEN!!!

Tue, 19 Oct 2010 00:00:00 -0700

We'll be playing a Halloween party here in Richmond at Amber Grove Inn (www.ambergrove.com) on Saturday, OCT 30th. TIX are $25/couple, and includes finger food and beer (cash bar also). Set times 7:30 pm - 11:30 pm. Come hang out with us!

Oh yea, COSTUMES REQUIRED!

-VR

HaPPy Fall Y'aLL

Sun, 19 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0700

Summer 2010 was grand for the band, and we're looking forward to an exciting fall/winter... We'd like to welcome our latest and greatest additions: Nate Brown (The Word Brown, Oregon Hill Funk All-stars) on keys and vocals, & the fabulous Tod Ellsworth (from Steve Bassett's great band) on electric bass, upright bass, and vocals. The band sounds better than it ever has.

We have 6 new songs for you to check out. A special shout out to Palmer Wilkins of Millwright Sound (Richmond, VA) for helping make us sound as good as we can...

New recorded songs include:

Magick (ryan adams)
Cecelia (paul simon)
Gone, Gone, Gone (robert plant/allison krauss)
Safety Dance (men without hats)
Come Dancing (the kinks)
Crazy (gnarls barkley)

And a big THANK YOU to Rick Kidd (Rick Kidd Photography) for our groovy new pix. Rest assured, we sound better than we look (not that these pix don't rock your eyeballs)...

Drop us a line if you'd like to book the band, make a song request, or just say HELLO !

- V.R.

Happy Happy Summer

Wed, 09 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0700

hey all, thx for stopping by. Lots of new changes on the way. New pix and demo's coming soon. Also, we'd like to welcome Tod Ellsworth on bass and Nate Brown on keys/vox. The band is working diligently, tightening up old songs and adding new ones. We have a busy Summer on deck - check out the CALENDAR pg to see where we'll be. Till then, happy sunning.

VR

Happy Holidays All

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Happy Holidays everyone. We wish you a pleasant end to 2009 and a bright 2010, filled with peace, love & music. We will be in hibernation for the next few months, but look for us sometime in late winter. We will be armed with a few extra pounds and several new tunes. Be good...

-VR