Runaway Cab's quest is in the saturated music market in North Carolina, while that of the Bulls is what the film "Bull Durham" refers to as "the show."
Reminiscent of Bon Jovi's performance on the top of the Ed Sullivan Theater during the David Letterman show, Chapel Hill-based Runaway Cab belted out their self-described "modern rock" atop the upper-level concourse at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park to open the season April 5.
Matt DeMargel, director of media and promotion for the Bulls, said "our assistant general manager saw them (Runaway Cab) on a profile on NBC17 with Larry Pickett and liked their sound."
"We really wanted to find someone with a local flavor," DeMargel added.
Cars honked on the Durham Freeway and fans waiting to enter the stadium danced in the street.
"Its like we're in a music video," said guitarist Erich Brunk.
"To be up here is just off the hook," said lead singer Ned Clark II. "We wanted to have something people could connect with even though we're all the way up here."
A half-hour before the show, countless Bulls' staff and band members were scrambling to get the acoustics just right. Chad Hough, Runaway Cab's drummer, thought it finally sounded good, but he said it wasn't easy.
"It was real tough getting the sound correct playing right into a building and all."
