Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Machine will play Dog Days Riverfest’s opening night on Aug. 4 at USA Raft Adventure Resort in Erwin

Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Machine will play Dog Days Riverfest’s opening night on Aug. 4 at USA Raft Adventure Resort in Erwin.

Nine bands will take the USA Raft Adventure Resort stage for the second annual Dog Days Riverfest on Aug. 4 and 5. The two-day music festival will bring a mixture of musical genres and sounds to the banks of the Nolichucky River in Erwin.

Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Machine is one of those bands.

Starting up around four years ago, Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Machine has made a name for themselves locally with their bluesy-inspired, dynamic sound — a sound they are bringing with them to Dog Days’ opening night.

You were a performer at Dog Days last year — how was that? And what made you want to come back this year?

“Last year at Dog Days we had an absolute blast. The atmosphere and crowd were phenomenal. The lineup (just like this year) was full of our favorite people, musically and otherwise. Big Son, Donnie and the Dry Heavers, The Kindest People, Dimestore Cowboys — all of em. Six Rivers did a great job putting it together and Jasound² is the best around to get things loud in all the right ways. Lord knows you can’t do much better than putting all this right next to the river and the USA Raft folks were fantastic with all the accommodations. Great vibes on every level.”

Can you describe your sound?

“We pay a lot of homage to the blues and soul giants — people like Muddy Waters, Freddie King, Etta James, that sort. Music like theirs has been a huge inspiration in shaping our essential sound to be raucous and evocative, heartfelt and intense.”

What makes a performance by Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Machine special?

“The band has been together in various forms for about four years, initially called Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Collective to reflect our member-fluid dynamic (but changed to DBBM for aesthetic purposes). It’s a really fun band to play in for that reason, though. Our sound changes with every lineup and the songs have really evolved with the variety of interpretations you get in this format.”

What do you love most about making music?

“We pour it out every time and it’s the most joyous experience you could want as a musician.”

What are you most looking forward to about performing at Dog Days?

“As you might expect, we were ecstatic to be invited back for 2023. It’s the same story this year with all the people involved. I can only imagine it will be an even bigger party this time, now that everybody knows what it’s all about.”

Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Machine will take the USA Raft Adventure Resort stage at 7:30 on Friday, Aug. 4. Tickets are on sale now at https://www.dogdaysriverfest.com/.