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What’s up, Kris Bell fans?  This week, we’re talkin’ live music and blogs galore.  First up, LIVE MUSIC!  On Tuesday, February 7, Kris and the boys will be playing Smith’s Olde Bar in Atlanta.  I’ve never been there, but I’ve heard fantastic things about the venue, so if you’re in the area, head out and get your rock on Tuesday night.  Tickets are $12 at the door.

On Sunday, February 19, Kris will be playing The Warehouse in Clarksville, Tennessee, along with several other bands, to raise money for Mikey’s Miracle Foundation.  Doors open at 4 pm.  More details are sure to come.  For more shows, see the list of shows on the right hand side of the blog.

The last couple of weeks have also brought a few new music blogs featuring Kris.  Check out Boomerocity’s blog with information on how things are going in the studio and Kris’ views on the state of the music industry today.   For a Q&A where Kris talks about his inspirations and how he feels about musicians doing cover tunes, be sure to read the Creative Spotlights’ blog.  For something a little different, be sure to click through to Uncle Shag’s blog on Longtown Sound.  Unc features the music of indie artists, and this past Wednesday, Kris was one of the featured artists.  Take a listen to the whole show.  You’re sure to find something you like (besides Kris, of course!).

As always, check out our regular features on Facebook.  To avoid missing a thing, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and do the same for Kris too.  Links to all of our sites are to the right of the blog.

Video of the Week

Photo of the Week

Merch of the Week

It’s been a little while since our last Rebel Bell blog…. the Belle’s needed a little rest… but here we are, back again, well rested and full of energy that comes only from our favorite music and our favorite rock star!  While we have been on hiatus, Kris has been rockin’ up a storm!  Doing shows galore as well as studio work on an upcoming EP.  I think that is just awesome – DEFINATELY the GOOD kind!   Don’t you?  I know I am looking forward to a little more KB music on my iPod. 

Remember to keep up-to-date on what Kris is doing by checking out his website. There is a calendar there with upcoming shows and if you haven’t been to one in a while (like me) or even if you were at one just this past weekend, you don’t want to miss any opportunity to get to one soon.  With shows over the next few months in Tennessee, Georgia and my personal favorite TEXAS… there are some great chances to get in on an amazing show!

FYI:  Kris has been nominated for two awards in the MUSIC CITY MAYHEM AWARDS.  That event will be held on March 24, 2012 at the Rutledge in Nashville!

BREAKING NEWS:  Starting tomorrow (1-25-12), you can go to Hard Rock Cafe Nashville’s Facebook page and download a KB tune as he competes in the Hard Rock Rising competition.  Go…. download… and send ALL your friends there too!  But remember:  it doesn’t start until TOMORROW.

Keep an eye on what Rebel Bell has to say about Kris and if you haven’t joined our Facebook page, do that, as well as sign on to get email updates from this blog.  This is where the fans hang out… we love Kris’ music and we want everyone to know about it!  I know you do too!  Join us and let’s spread the word.

We’ll be back next week with more updates. “See” you later!
Lisa

Kris was joined by his bass player John Cooper in a small dark corner of the bar, where they entertained the crowd and gained new fans by playing lots of covers and some of Kris’ more rockin’ originals.  I really enjoyed the fact that Coop joined Kris, because it allowed them to play songs Kris hasn’t played acoustic in the past–songs like “Texas Flood,” “Little Wing,” and “Gimme Shelter.”  He also hit originals like “Runnin’ Out on You,” “Hope You’re Proud,” and “Will I Believe.”

London’s started out pretty busy and got even more crowded as the night went on.  People danced, rocked out, and bought CD’s!  The best selling point was that Kris was available to sign their CD’s during the breaks. That really seemed to be the tipping point when people decided to purchase the CD.  Two people–at different times in the night–wouldn’t buy a CD until Kris played an original song.  They were REALLY interested in hearing what Kris could do.  They both went home with autographed CD’s, for sure!

Surprisingly enough, I didn’t take many pictures.  The room was darkish, and, well, it was an acoustic show, so Kris and Coop just sorta sat there  I spent my time chatting with the people there, making sure they knew Kris had CD’s for sale.  I did get video of the entire show, some of which will be uploaded to YouTube.  I had originally planned on posting a video of “The Wrong Road,” but I changed my mind.  I always love when Kris plays this song, and acoustic is no exception.  I love the boys’ grins at the end of the song…

I’d tell you about all the little details of the night, but since you’re here, you probably want to hear about the stuff that pertains to Kris, huh?  As you can tell from the blog title, Kris did come away with an award.  He won BEST ROCK GUITAR!  Now, any of you who have seen him perform know he’s a demon on stage, and his guitar solos are legendary for showing his passion for playing.  His winning this particular award was not a surprise to me.  When his name was announced, Kris hit the stage to give his acceptance speech.

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Unfortunately, his four-hour gig on Thursday night had ripped his voice to shreds, so he croaked out a quick thank you (sorry, it was kind of a blur, because I was so excited for Kris LOL!) and left the stage amidst a whirl of congratulations from his fellow nominees.  Kris was still kind of in a daze when I pulled him aside to get a photo of him and his award.

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The presenter had also given him the envelope with the nominees and card that had his name on it as the winner, so Kris held that up too.  Kind of nice to see who his competition was.  I’ve seen all but Manic Bloom perform and can attest to the other bands’ talents.

The other awards Kris was up for went to other nominees.  Best Male Vocal went to Chris from Blackwater James.  Best Live Band went to Blackwater James.  And Best Song went to Love’s Tragedy for “Seeing Red.”  I’ve linked to each band’s webpage so you can check them out for yourselves.

Thanks to Bonnie of Dungeon Promotions.  I heard a lot of great comments from the bands at the event saying that it was great to see so many bands in one place.  You did an amazing job of pulling it all together.  You are the woman!

To finish off, I thought I’d add a video of a “little ditty” (tm Kris) called “You Can Take It All.”  I love this song because it shows Kris both as a finesse guitar player and a mad solo guitar player.  Next year, I’d love for THIS song to be nominated for Best Song.

This weekend, the Kris Bell Band will be performing in Clarksville, TN, at the Rivers & Spires Festival‘s Last Band Standing competition.  He’s slated to play Saturday afternoon at 5 pm on the Courthouse Stage, after which, a winner for the Saturday portion will be selected and that winner (fingers crossed for Kris!) will play the Friday winner.  Get out to support Kris. Vote early and vote often!!!

P.S.  A quick thanks to Ray and Patti LeGrand of Nashville Metal Bands for letting me hang out at their booth.  Those two are amazing, and so supportive of Kris.  You guys rock and deserved a shout out as well!

It’s been a long time since we’ve blogged, but if this isn’t blog-worthy, NOTHING is!!!  This past Saturday, Kris fronted for Blackfoot in Clive, Iowa–lead singing and playing guitar, and based on one fan’s recap (thanks csmjnn!!!), he rocked their faces off!  Gotta love a good Kris Bell moment!

Hi all,

I’m not very good at this at all but I wanted to give it a try for you guys. I hope it’s not too boring and it helps recap it. Also, feel free to pass it on if you think I missed someone who would want to know about it. It was a great night and I’m so happy that I got to share in it with Kris.

The venue was a great venue and easy to find. The audience was amazing! The venue was pretty full and I believe it holds 1400. It was packed and the audience was so into it. I absolutely loved it and loved watching Kris take it all in. Anyway, Once I got to the venue I noticed most of the tables were full but I saw people standing right up by the stage against a fence so I knew exactly where I was staking my claim and took it. I didn’t see Kris yet but the spot I got was right in front of his microphone.

Since this was a different type of experience for Kris I didn’t know for sure if I would get a chance to talk to him or not. When I saw Kris, he was setting up and gave me the biggest smile. Once he was set up he motioned for me to come to the side of the stage. Of course I had a gal save my spot, went over, talked to Kris, got a hug and a new Kris Bell pick. He was so excited, but nervous. He was very happy to see a familiar face. I told him that I had to be there since he actually had to travel further than me for once. He was afraid he was going to mess up so I told him he would kick ass and not to worry about it. He would be fabulous. I went back to the crowd and of course the girl asked “Who is that?”. “Do you know him?” I directed her to krisbellmusic.com.

Blackfoot came on and Kris KILLED it!!! They absolutely loved it!!! He was having so much fun and the crowd gave him the love back. They all thought he was amazing. I heard a lot of people state that they had seen Blackfoot before but they were never this good. “That new guy” was awesome. I loved hearing that! I would tell people about krisbellmusic.com and they were amazed he just recently learned their stuff. I don’t know how many times I heard how amazing he was with Blackfoot. I was loving it and so happy for Kris. On stage he even told the crowd that his dream was coming true and they should all follow their dreams. He was in heaven and right were he belonged.

Molly Hatchet came on and were amazing! They, of course, gave it up for Blackfoot and Kris Bell as well. The drummer for Blackfoot also filled in for Molly Hatchet’s band so that was kind of cool. Once Molly and the guys were done they were doing a meet and greet but I was just going to stick around to say bye to Kris. I loved watching all the fans approach him, want a picture and/or autograph, and compliment him. A couple girls were waiting with me and really wanted their picture with Kris so I just told them to ask, as I was smiling. They got backstage, took the picture,and then came back out to thank me and talk about Kris. Again asking if I knew him, etc. I gave them a krisbellmusic card and told them to go to the website. I finally saw Kris again and was waving bye but he told me to come backstage so of course I did. We talked and he just couldn’t believe that happened. I told him how amazing it was and that I was so proud. I told him I tried to get pictures, etc but was no Laura. He laughed. I told him that during the show as I posted some pics you guys and Terri were asking about it and he just laughed. I told him you guys wanted recaps and he said he was a little busy. It was a lot of responsibility for me to be the only one there. LOL! I told him people were asking about him, if I knew him, etc, and he told well you better be saying yes when I hesitated on how to answer. I agreed and told him I directed a lot of people to his website. He smiled at that. As we were talking he just kept giving me hugs, saying how nervous he had been, not wanting to screw it up, and he just thought it was amazing he was there. I reassured him how amazing he was and that it was so cool to be there. He was hoping he would get to do it again, me too!!! Fans would still come congratulate him as we talked and the guys from Molly Hatchet all stopped to say how amazing he was as well. I just loved watching all of this and being there for it. I got more hugs before leaving and then took off so he could talk to more of his fans.

OK…so I think that does it. I hope it’s not too boring or anything. I hope it gives a feel for the night. It was just amazing being there and watching Kris as this happened for him. I was so happy for him and I loved how the crowd reacted. It was just an amazing night and I wish all of you could have been there. I hope this helps though. I will try and post some pictures later today or tomorrow, but they won’t be Laura or Lisa pictures.

Love you girls and hope to see you soon!

For more pictures of the event, check out Jen’s Facebook HERE.