Those who are familiar with the Storrs music scene almost certainly know Ruby Leftstep, the four-piece group who has taken the scene by storm over the past year with their bright and energetic brand of alternative rock. Among the distinct features of the band’s sound is the contributions of UConn’s own Thom Busemeyer.
As the group’s lead guitarist, Busemeyer’s playing is at the forefront of their sound. Taking inspiration from J Mascis and Jerry Garcia, his guitar parts feature smooth and pristine runs up and down the fretboard that inject their already bright sound with even more bursts of light.
Busemeyer first picked up a guitar when he was nine, inspired by his dad who also plays guitar. He recalled trying to learn Alex Lifeson’s guitar parts to Rush songs like “Limelight” and “La Villa Strangiato,” though he noted that the latter was “kind of impossible [to play] as a child.”
From there, he started taking lessons at Downright Music in Collinsville, Connecticut, where he also had the chance to play with other kids learning instruments. Later on, he would go back there to teach lessons and pay it forward to the next generation of young guitarists. He said that for him, teaching guitar is “really fun because you get to jam with kids” and foster their interest in the instrument.
After playing bass in a band in high school, Busemeyer joined Ruby Leftstep in late 2021. He knew two of the band’s members, singer and guitarist Dylan Hrinda and drummer Eddie Dahill, from high school and started jamming with them, soon establishing a musical connection that has grown to sonic heights since then.
In the early days of his time in the band, he recalled that they “spent a lot of time just sitting around and writing music together, so a lot of the earlier songs are group efforts.” Now, he said that it’s tougher to be involved in the songwriting process since he’s at UConn and away from the rest of the band, who is in the Northwest corner of the state.
Though he doesn’t write as much now, he said that writing and developing the group’s songs is still a collaborative process. He explained that the process will consist of a member, particularly Dahill as of late, bringing in ideas that the band expands upon, with each member having their own spins on their parts.
“Eddie usually will write a guitar part and have a vocal melody or something, and then I’ll add some little bits onto it,” he said. “Usually it’s a really cool guitar part, but I’ll do an embellishment here or there or change it a bit to add a little of my own thing.”
Among the songs that he said are his favorites to play are “Remaining” and the soon-to-be-released “The Comedown,” emphasizing that the songs feature particularly fun guitar parts for him.
His guitar parts have translated well on stage, particularly as the band started performing in the Storrs scene. The band’s first show in Storrs was hosted by SOS Booking at the Storrs Congregational Church last fall. Since then, they’ve become one of the most popular acts in the scene. Busemeyer and the band have performed at local house venues and on-campus: most notably at WHUS Radio’s Battle of The Bands competition last year, where they came in first place.
Busemeyer spoke positively of the shows he’s played with Ruby Leftstep in Storrs, noting that the crowds in the area have been more engaged and livelier than crowds at shows they played earlier on.
“The UConn crowd is so good,” he said. “Everybody is so receptive and super stoked. You give energy into the crowd and they give it right back, which feels good. And not every crowd is like that.”
And some of the liveliest moments in their shows come during Busemeyer’s solos as he dazzles the crowd with his sharp and soaring style, driving the band to an energetic peak that Storrs crowds go crazy for.