Velvet Dogs

VELVET DOGS

Ed Atlas • Hal Perry • Kevin Murakami • Dennis Kennedy • Kevin Jonas

The Bellevue-based Velvet Dogs' inauspicious beginning dates back to 2009 when Ed Atlas played guitar so poorly that he got kicked out of a band he co-founded.

With a staggering blend of resolve and naiveté, he forged onward, scouring Craigslist and the bulletin board at the local Guitar Center in search of like-minded musicians. It was against this backdrop that a meeting with vocalist Hal Perry - who had been booted by a band as well – was inevitable.

The band that would eventually become the Velvet Dogs jammed for the first time during the spring of 2012. Later that year, a co-worker overheard Ed bemoaning the fact that he couldn’t find a bass player for his fledgling project. She told her husband and that’s how Kevin Murakami joined the debacle.

The Velvet Dogs made their public debut on May 18, 2013 at the Bellevue Picnic in Nashville. The lineup has changed a few times over the years, but the core remains the same. In 2017 Kevin switched to guitar and a national search landed drummer Dennis Kennedy. OK, so his employer transferred him to Nashville, but whatever. Kevin Jonas, the most recent addition, was the last man standing after a competitive round of bass auditions in 2021.

Some guys play golf; others do this. And while their golf scores have suffered, playing crunchy/grungy/poppy/metallic cover tunes is tons of fun for the Velvet Dogs and their legions of followers. Catch ‘em January 20 at Wynot Saloon!

WHAT ABOUT THAT NAME?

The band is named after The Velvet Dog, a great New Orleans bar that did not survive Hurricane Katrina. It was located in the French Quarter on the "local side" of St. Peter Street, directly across from Preservation Hall and Pat O'Brien's. Friendly folks. Bikers. Cops. And a juke box with everything from Helen Reddy to Queens Of The Stone Age.

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