Mike Dowty, lead guitarist for the jam-style rock group Ripple Effect, could probably be best described as a “Dead Head.” He can rattle off dates and locations of Grateful Dead bootlegs from the top of his head quicker than most people can breathe. He claims to have attended more than forty Dead concerts. He can immediately recite lyrics and play chords from several dozen Dead songs.

Dowty has a tie-dyed soul, but he is not the only member of Ripple Effect who has one. Drummer Clay Stryker, rhythm guitarist Shawn Russell and bassist Pickle share Dowty’s passion for the Dead.

“I went to my first show when I was seventeen,” Russell stated. “I wanted to get out and see the world. So, I entered the Dead world and I never left. I was fascinated with the bizarre sights and the amazing music and people.”

The Grateful Dead left a lasting impression on these three young men, eventually inspiring them to form a group of their own to carry on the Dead’s improvisational spirit of music in their stomping grounds of Lincoln, Nebraska (a city that has a “burgeoning” music scene, according to Stryker).

But although Ripple Effect’s live shows are utilizing fewer Dead covers these days (not to mention cover versions of songs by Steely Dan and The Allman Brothers) in favor of newly created material, the group’s individual members continue to pursue their Dead roots.

Dowty plays in a side-project called Just The Opposite that exclusively covers Grateful Dead songs as an acoustic duo (“just harmony and vocals” he explained). Pickle and ex-Ripple Effect drummer Phil Dake joined together with a few ex-members of Blue Tango to form a side-project called The Alleycats.

A rained-out show

The formation of Ripple Effect began four years ago when Dowty, a previous member of The Flow, met Russell, who had been playing around town as a member of The Homegrown Blues Band. The two of them started jamming on the front porch of Russell’s house and soon formed a bond.

Dowty and Russell formed a group called Purifier, which didn’t last very long. After that group’s demise, Dowty and Russell started to form another group. Pickle and Stryker were eventually added to the line-up a couple of months later, and Ripple Effect was born.

The group made a name for itself playing small clubs around Lincoln and Omaha. As the group became more experimental with its improvisational sound, its fan base continued to grow.

Having a large fan base allowed the group to set up a performance at the Pleasantdale Ampitheater in Pleasantdale, Nebraska. The show drew several thousand people and turned into an all-night camp-out similar to Woodstock.

“The ampitheater is a great place,” Stryker said. “It’s under the stars, and it sure does work to party outside. We now play all-night shows there four to six times a summer. We get good turn-outs there, anywhere from 350 to 3500 people at each gig.”

The last gig was May 9th, and it drew 1500 eager fans on an overcast day. Unfortunately, it started pouring just 45 minutes into Ripple Effect’s first set. The show had to be cancelled.

“It was such a bummer!” Dowty exclaimed. “People were hyped, the energy was high, and then it rained. We didn’t want to cancel the remainder of the show, but we had no choice. With all of the electrical equipment on the stage, it became a very dangerous situation. Even if the rain would’ve stopped, the puddles left behind were big enough that we couldn’t risk electrocuting everybody to death.”

All for the fans

The members of Ripple Effect realize they are lucky to be where they are at right now.

After all, not every unsigned, local group can draw several thousand people to an ampitheater for a performance.

The group is also in a unique position because all of its fans eventually become friends.

“We talk to our fans at every gig,” Dowty said. “Our fans are very important to us. If it weren’t for them, we probably couldn’t be performing on stage every night.”

A close rapport with the audience can often lead to strange, wonderful things.

For example, the group met its manager and attorney, Mike Dolich, after a show.

He approached the band with an offer it could not refuse.

“He told us that he would buy us a sound system if we would allow him to be our sound tech,” Dowty said.

“We couldn’t pass on a deal like that,” he concluded. “Eventually, [Dolich] became our manager as well.”

Dowty realizes his fans are very special people. They are special because they like Ripple Effect’s music, and they are special because they are Dead Heads just like him.

“That’s why it is very important to give our fans what they want,” he continued. “We never go to a gig with a set list of songs that we are going to play. The audience always wants a spontaneous show.

“The audiences’ energy and enthusiasm directly influences what happens on stage,” he concluded. “If they want a Dead song, then we will give it to them. If they want another original song, well then, they can have that too.”

Ripple Effect also allows its audience to tape all live performances. In fact, the group will actually allow people to plug in recording equipment to its soundboard for better quality.

“It’s a grand, hand-me-down tradition,” Russell stated. “It provides fans with a memento of the show.”

But that is not all the bootlegging provides. It also gives the group an opportunity to be heard on tape.

Currently, the band has no plans to enter a studio anytime soon. Russell and Dowty consider the studio as a “waste of time and money,” while Stryker doesn’t believe that the group’s live energy could be condensed onto a compact disc.

“Our shows pack a lot of energy, happiness, groove and dancing,” he stated. “That can’t be reproduced on compact disc.”

Ripple Effect will be playing at People’s tonight at 9:30. Tickets are $2.