This Friday, come on down to hear Malcolm Wells & The Two Timers, Des Moines’s only harmonica and guitar driven blues band. On their style, Wells shares, “We are a traditional blues band. Blues can mean so many different things. We love the 50s and 60s of Chicago and Texas. And [guitarist Matt Woods] is really into hill country stuff down south. We’re steeped in yesteryear, but we bring our own interpretations on the solo side. People make a snap judgment when they hear traditional blues – like it can’t be energetic or vibrant. Which is interesting, because we’re mostly singing about relationships, and not a lot about relationships has changed over the last 50 or so years. Relationships still deal with the same problems, so blues is as relevant as it’s ever been.” And while their name may seem like an ode relationship-based mischief, it has much sweeter origins.
“I retired from music after 18 years in the Soul Searchers and didn’t think I’d play regularly again. Matt Woods asked me to sit in with the Thunderbolts one night, and afterward, they told me that if I wanted to start playing again, they’d back me under whatever name I wanted. I was struck by how down-to-earth they were. We started playing together, and the joke became that they were “two timing” on themselves.”
“Noce is a really special place. We get to play there once or twice a year, and it’s always a special experience. Everyone I’ve seen play at Noce delivers a slightly different show than they do at other places. There’s more interplay between the audience and the band.”