Hector Ward & The Big Time

Hector Ward & The Big Time play The Saxon Pub on Tuesday, July 21, from 8 PM to 9:30 PM. It's an Austin octet, and that size shows in the sound: they pull from rock and roll, blues, country, funk, soul, and Latin, and they bring all of it to the stage at once.

Ward has spent two decades playing in the local scene, and his Afro-Cuban roots are a big part of what you'll hear. That comes through in the horn lines, the guitar riffs, and Ward's own vocals, which sit right at the front of the mix. It's a sound KUTX 98.9 critic Jack Anderson has highlighted, and with eight people on stage, there's a lot of ground covered in a single set.

If you're not familiar with them, the mix of styles is the thing to keep in mind. Rock, blues, and country are the foundations, but the funk, soul, and Latin elements keep it from settling into any one lane. The horns and the guitar work do a lot of the heavy lifting, and Ward's vocals tie it together. It's a full band in the truest sense—eight musicians on one stage, rather than a small group backed by a few guests.

The show runs from 8 PM to 9:30 PM, so it's a relatively tight window on a Tuesday night. Tickets are $10.