San Diego Reader

Steve Denyes: Guitar (acoustic), Guitar (electric), Vocals | Brendan Kremer: Drums, Vocals

Genre: Rock

RIYL: Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Leon Redbone, Dan Zanes, Justin Roberts, Ralph's World

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Related Links

• Hullabaloo website

• "The Sound of San Diego is...Kids' Music??" · Aug. 23, 2012

• "Hullabaloo Raises a Ruckus" · Aug. 22, 2012

Synoposis

Inception: San Diego, 2004

Influences: Johnny Cash, Woody Guthrie, Mr. Rogers

Background:

“The best thing about performing for kids is how much pure joy we see on a daily basis,” says Steve Denyes of country-fried children’s music duo Hullabaloo. “Kids are so free and uninhibited, they just dance and sing because it’s fun. They don’t get hung up on whether they look cool or not. The hardest part is choosing the right song at the right moment, to keep kids engaged in the music. Kids’ attention spans are short, so you’ve got to work hard to keep them with you.”

They have won major national awards, including Parents Choice and NAPPA Gold, plus inclusion on Best of the Year lists from Parents Magazine and Education.com.

Steve Denyes and Brendan Kremer of Hullabaloo grew up together in the San Diego area. They met in kindergarten in Del Mar and started playing music together in fifth grade, but they never dreamed that, as adults, they would still be buddies and still be playing for kids.

As of 2011, Denyes still lives in Del Mar, while Kremer has moved down the road to Encinitas. Their CD Raise a Ruckus was released in September 2012. Lest you think performing for kids is easier than playing bars, Denyes says, “Once, we were playing on a street stage downtown, and some Civil War re-enactors came marching around the corner with a cannon, aimed right at us and the families we were singing for. We had to stop mid-song and evacuate the stage and the crowd before we took on cannon fire.”

Conversely, according to Denyes, “Our best gig ever was at San Diego Botanic Gardens, formerly Quail Gardens. We played out on their meadow and the place was packed. We were about half way through our set when a little summer rain started to fall. We just kept playing and the kids kept dancing. It felt like Woodstock.”

Discography

Video