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Date: 4/18/2023
RUSSELL — The 413s, a rock ’n’ roll band with a blues heart, will be featured at the celebration after the Westfield River Wildwater Races in Russell on Saturday, April 22.
The 413s are brothers from Montgomery, Dan McKellick on bass and Liam McKellick on drums, as well as Dylan Nicolle of Huntington on lead guitar and Julian Greve of Williamsburg on vocals and harmonica.
Officially, they became The 413s when Greve joined the band in January 2022. In their first year they played 33 shows, including Chester on Track (where they will be returning on May 20), and they have already booked 55 shows in 2023 “so far.”
The 413s describe their music as classic rock, blues, country and funk, with roots in early blues music, mentioning B.B. King.
“The old stuff — we can see all the connections that stem from blues music,” Liam McKellick said, adding that he likes when the music was less processed.
The 413s also have six or seven original songs, three on Spotify, and they are putting out an EP soon that they are making with a private recorder in Granby. Greve writes the lyrics, and the other three members make up the music.
Nicolle said they’re not just a rock band, but implement jazz, swing and dance music.
He said they are accessible to their audience, which is made up of all age ranges.
“Everyone likes to dance and can get into the music,” he said.
Besides weekly performances, including regular gigs at the Southwick Inn, Beaver Brook Country Club in Williamsburg, and the Knox Trail Inn in Otis, the band members are all in school. Liam McKellick will be graduating from Gateway Regional High School this June, Dan McKellick is studying law and society at Western New England University; Nicolle studies criminal justice, and Greve geoscience, at Holyoke Community College.
Asked how they keep up with their school work and two to three practices a week for their one or two shows a week, they said, “No sleep. We make the best of the situation.”
Some of them also have other jobs. Greve said they have recently taken a step up in pay for their music, but reinvest the majority of what they make.
“We’re constantly reinvesting. We’re always looking to get better musically and with equipment,” they said.
What they enjoy most is entertaining and giving back to the community. They have already performed two cancer benefits, one they organized themselves for a friend of the band who got sick.
Asked if a big break came along, would they drop their studies to pursue it, they became reflective.
“We are very much into the music, which is a major priority,” said Liam McKellick, although both brothers said there are expectations for them to follow a career track.
“If the opportunity presented itself,” Nicolle said, with Greve adding, “If we could make music our career, which would be ideal, I think we would.”
Their sets at the April 22 party in Strathmore Park are 1-1:40 p.m. and 3-3:40 p.m., with awards being handed out in between. The party is the post-race gathering following the annual canoe and kayak races, which begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Knightville Dam and at 11 a.m. in Huntington Center.
Nicolle said they have all had a connection with the races since they were very young — they practically go by his house in Huntington, so when Katherine Koegel, one of the coordinators, reached out to them with the opportunity to play for the races, they were very grateful.
Liam McKellick said they were also hoping to race this year, but will be on stage instead.
“We’re playing at the same time,” he said.