Ben Brock was a late bloomer. Many people start their music lessons in single-digit ages with piano lessons, a forced ritualistic activity that for some results in tears, wasted money, and ultimately adult regret when said former child piano student, who has spent teenage years going to concerts while lamenting what could have been, voices a load of regret while wishing there was a way to turn back time to stick with those lessons in piano, violin, trumpet or guitar.
Or, you’re Oklahoma native Ben Brock, you start later in your teenage years. One of four sons of a musician father who all at one point picked up the guitar, he’s the only one who stuck with it.
Brock will perform with musical partner C.J. Greco tonight at Animas City Theatre, when the duo opens for local rock band Elder Grown.
“I started playing guitar when I was like 19 years old, after I graduated high school. My dad played my whole entire life, he was a pastor, and he still does gospel music and stuff like that. He kind of taught me, got me started, taught me a few chords, and basically left it up to me on whether I was going to continue to do it or not,” Brock said. “I have three other brothers, they all kind of dabbled in music a little bit. My dad always says ‘yeah, between the four of you guys, you’re the last brother I thought would actually stick with it.’ He claims I’m better than him now, but I don’t think that at all. He’s just being nice, I think.”
Brock had been one of those kids who had a short run of piano lessons as a child, a two-week venture into learning music that was shelved for a dozen or so years. Picking it back up as an “older” student of music is what helped him stick with it.
“Being older, the attention span and the willing to want to do it, and at that point, after high school, I didn’t want to go to college and honestly didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life” he said. “I started playing music, and I thought, ‘well, I’m decent, I can probably do this.’ So that’s what I’m doing now.”
If you go
WHAT: Local rock band Elder Grown and roots rocker Ben Brock.
WHEN: 7 p.m. Friday (April 8).
WHERE: Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Drive.
TICKET: $15-$20. Available online at https://bit.ly/3r4Hs57.
MORE INFORMATION: Visit www.animascitytheatre.com.
Brock is a roots-rock dude reared on James Taylor and a healthy dose of classic and ’90s rock. He ventured into songwriting at age 21, getting the “songwriting bug,” which resulted in him wanting to do nothing but write. His is a folk-heavy output, where ballads are delivered with an Americana vibe. His debut was a seven-song EP recorded in his buddies’ home studio, and he has a forthcoming release he’s currently working on in a studio in Oklahoma City.
“It’s got more of a full band feel to it, it’s a bit more rock and roll than I’m normally used to,” Brock said.
Most Oklahoma-based musicians who rub elbows with the Americana world get lumped into the “Red Dirt” genre of the Sooner State – a sound that dips into Southern rock, jam and country without fully committing to any. While he’s not claiming to be a purveyor of Red Dirt sounds, he is a proud artist from Oklahoma.
“It’s hard to get away from the Red Dirt when you’re raised on it,” Brock said. “I wouldn’t consider my music Red Dirt music; it’s on the Americana side, but it's not much country. But there’s definitely some stuff in there that you could pick up and say ‘yeah, he sounds like an Oklahoma artist.’”
Bryant Liggett is a freelance writer and KDUR station manager. Reach him at liggett_b@fortlewis.edu.
