Back By August

A lot of bands make a name for themselves due to their unique sound, or their stage presence. Ryan, a.k.a. Back By August, makes people remember him through the stories he tells through the lyrics in his songs.

Ryan first fiddled around with his Ma's guitar back in 2000 but didn't get serious with playing and writing till later on in 2002 when he teamed up with Andy Barkan when together they wrote a 4 song EP playing the coffee shop circuit in Billings, Montana. In mid-2004 Ryan joined the Army and music took a backseat for years.

In 2011, Ryan met someone that not only brought music back into his life, but was also the reason behind the start of Back By August… You see, she was a Romanian going to school in Germany and she left to see family over that summer at home … Leaving with a whisper in Ryan’s ear that she’d be “Back By August”

While the relationship didn’t last, that spark she had left turned ashes into a flame. Ryan picked up his guitar again and started writing. After writing a few songs, Ryan played his first show as Back By August at a local bar in Baumholder, Germany. At the show, he was introduced to a few other musicians which turned into opening up for their bands around Germany.

In 2012 Ryan was re-stationed at Ft. Carson, Colorado and soon the Army life and a deployment took ahold of his time, and his writing. While he still played his guitars often, writing new riffs, learning new cover songs for open mic nights, his music wasn’t center stage.

In late 2016 another fire was lit and Ryan started to pursue his music once again. This time, with the push of his wife and daughter, he petitioned a local Colorado Springs venue to open up for Secondhand Serenade, Hawthorne Heights and Ronnie Winters (from The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus). While he was turned down for the gig, he made quite an impression on the venue’s talent agent and got an opening gig for Indianapolis band Hero Jr.