The word ”change” was like the gold stringed lettering hanging on a wall surrounded by glittery streamers at a party, and drummer Eddie Provencio and bass player Bruno Avitia were the guests blowing out the candles and cutting the cake.
In the summer of 2018, El Paso band Ribo Flavin—who consisted of Provencio and Avitia plus a few more members—were asked to perform at the music an art event La Parada. However, some of the band members decided to go their separate ways, leaving Provencio and Avitia with the task of going out and finding other artists to perform with.
To add to the band, they asked 2 guitarists who had experience performing—Shaun Mahoney and Jorge Gonzalez—and all they needed was their emcee. “I put the group together and had seen Ralph the Ruckus perform and contacted him,” Provencio said.
Little did they know that this would not be just a one-time show together. Provencio, who enjoyed the outcome decided, “We liked the collaboration between Ribo Flavin and Ralph the Ruckus and that’s were the name came from, Ribo Ruckus.”
Even after a successful performance at La Parada, newly formed Ribo Ruckus was not done adding talent into their group. They needed one more sound that would tie them all together—and that was A. Billi Free.
Ribo Ruckus had not yet worked with midwest raised and now border city female artist, A. Billi Free. Avitia was taken off-guard, “I personally had never worked with her so when I first performed with her with Ribo Ruckus, I was surprised and she killed it!” Now with a complete band, Avitia mentioned that, “With her unique style, everyone does their own thing and it happened so naturally and so easily.”
Taking each other’s different flair and molding it into one sound ended up setting the tone for Ribo Ruckus. They decided to compete in The Lowbrow Palace’s Battle of the Bands. They were amongst a group of 20 plus different bands and even with a room full of different competition, nerves were the last feeling they had.
“Not to sound obnoxious, but we felt pretty confident and like we had it in the pocket,” emcee Ralph the Ruckus stated. They went through several rounds and were chosen in those rounds, so it was obvious why they felt like they were doing something right. If they were to win, they would leave not only with more credibility and money, but the opportunity to record at the southwest legendary recording studio Sonic Ranch—and that is exactly what happened.
Their combined talent alone screams versatility, because they all perform so differently but manage to make it work.
When asked to describe their music, there was a long pause, which was then broken with laughter because of their description. The band then mentioned that A. Billi Free had the best explanation: “It is a blend of jazz, hip-hop, soul, some rock, it is different and it’s kind of a mixed bag.”
Their talent is able to integrate different genres, leaving the audience and themselves with a feeling of a rush. She then explained the rush-like feeling: “There are some bands that are very heavy and stay with you for a couple of days, but we are a really fast dopamine hit, you feel good and you feel great, and at the end we bid you farewell—and then that’s it.”
After a busy weekend at South by Southwest in Austin with a performance at The Flamingo Cantina, and a road trip with a broken down van, Ribo Ruckus assures you that they do not plan on taking any breaks.
The band is already booking shows and is even set to play at a well known music festival this coming summer. They will be recording at Sonic Ranch, sometime at the end of May and are working on getting their music out to the public. The wait won’t be too long, keep your eyes out on Soundcloud for their music and some near future shows at local venues.
