Chris Hambrick has released a new single, “Rickey Henderson.” At first thought, this song is probably about the MLB hall of famer, but actually it’s about someone local. 

“The character is a real-life Fort Wayne kitchen hand and kind soul,” Hambrick said. “I worked with Rickey about six months before I had any consistent shows. 

“It’s my lexicon and wisdom in the lyrics delivered through a conversation with Rickey. It’s an alt-country track mixed with some ’60s power pop influence.” 

The song will be part of an album set to be finished for release this spring. 

You can hear “Rickey Henderson” on your favorite streaming site or catch it live at one of his upcoming shows, including Wednesday, March 19, at Sweetwater’s Lunch at Lunch Series from noon-1 p.m. and Thursday, March 20, at Chance Bar from 6-9:30 p.m. 

Of course, you can also check out Hambrick when he hosts open mic nights and performs with his band #IYKYK. 

Get funky with Rhythm Bloom

A new band to keep your eyes on is Rhythm Bloom, a jazzy, funky, afro-Cuban fusion act. 

Rhythm Bloom have only one show under their belts, but they are starting to put together some dates, including Friday, April 4, at The Brass Rail and Friday, April 25, at Deer Park Irish Pub. 

Until then, you can get a taste of their talents on social media, where they posted a performance of Chick Corea’s “Got a Match.” 

The band is comprised of drummer Zane Stackhouse, bassist William Schweikert, and keyboardist Ryan Bodecker. 

Whoa, Man! perform new song

Whoa, Man! recently debuted a new song at their performance at The Times Theater in Rochester. 

The new ditty, “Woman It Up,” is the follow-up to their debut single, “Whoa, Man.” 

Fort Wayne will get their taste of the new tune when the band perform at The Club Room at The Clyde Theatre on Friday, March 21.

Namby Pamby set to take flight

Fresh off the heels of gracing the cover of Whatzup, The Namby Pamby will be hitting the road in April in support of their latest release, The Birds Aren’t Migrating Like They’re Supposed To. 

The three-week tour will kickoff Friday, April 11, at The Brass Rail and will conclude May 3 in Brooklyn, New York. 

The journey will see them hitting such cities as Chicago, Milwaukee, Grand Rapids, Cincinnati, Atlanta, and Baltimore. 

Maren building a following

Maren are a band that have been making a name for themselves on the local scene. 

They’ve been around about a year, but have been ramping up gigs and creating a healthy fanbase. 

Vocalist/guitarist Jonah Gordon, guitarist Connor Bowdoin, guitarist Garrett Lehman, bassist Michael Delzoppo, and drummer Nick Nalley compile a good dose of original emo/alternative rock material: think Taking Back Sunday meets Foo Fighters with breakdowns. 

On March 28 they have a show at Be Here Now in Muncie and March 29 at Subterranean in Chicago, both shows with local buds Man of the Flood.

Be on the lookout for local dates. It also sounds like we could be getting a single soon.

Declassified go on record

The Declassified, formerly known as Decades, have a show coming up at Mitchell’s on Friday, March 14. 

If you haven’t set your eyes and ears on this high energy punk/rock/pop outfit, you must do so. 

With Josh Evans on vocals and guitar, Trenton V Plummer on bass, and Chris Elvidge on drums, they deliver a good dose of covers and originals. 

Covers include hits by the likes of Sublime, The Killers, Prince, and Billy Idol. 

As for originals, they recently released an album, Redacted, which delivers tracks like “Forklift Certified,” “Lizard People,” “My Girlfriend Has More Gigs Than Me,” and “Fell in Love With an Alien” with catchy lyrics like, “Heard a noise last night/Won’t believe what I saw; An alien woman standing 10 feet tall/She scooped me up and said, ‘You’re so fine’; Then she pulled out a probe that was bigger than mine.” 

You can hop onto YouTube and see the video for “Lizard People.” 

Additional dates include Friday, April 11, at Dupont Bar & Grill and Saturday, April 19, at Vinnie’s Bar in Decatur.