Hitting the road and playing music was a dream that Billy McCauley had since he became a teenager. More than that, he wanted to leave the Mina Sauk Valley and be somebody. Billy discovers a way for attaining the dreams when he creates the band Empty Pockets. As he soon discovers, getting out isn't as easy as he thinks, and the band continues to play local joints, including Hard Times. In a raunchy and rowdy tour of the underbelly of the Mina Sauk Valley, Billy wonders if local fame, and the ample supply of booze, drugs and women, can satisfy him or if life is meant to be hard times and empty pockets.