Band of Heathens
Band of Heathens
Antone’s
Austin, Texas
Band of Heathens make forming a band look easy, even downright preordained. The story behind the Austin-based quintet’s formation began when three alt-country songwriters that shared a weekly bill at Momo’s – Colin Brooks, Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist – began loosely collaborating on stage with each other’s songs. The spontaneity eventually gave way to a fully committed band that grew popular with Austinites and two live records that captured the spirit of a band better suited to an informal, live setting. It wasn’t until their third release did the band record their first studio album, the self-titled Band of Heathens, a structured format that seemed antithetical to the band’s proclivity for improvisation.
Part of the experience of seeing the Band of Heathens live is watching the vocal and guitar interplay among the three singer-songwriters. They are backed by a rhythm section with bassist Seth Whitney and drummer John Chipman and with pianist Trevor Nealon providing flourishes. The principal players dueled guitars throughout the set with each voice distinct from the other. Known for their jamming, free-wheeling tendencies, it was not uncommon to hear two extended solos in a song. Opening with the Hunter S. Thompson tribute, “L.A. County Blues,” the three harmonized on the chorus: “We’re burning down Las Vegas Town, had to sleep by noon.” But it’s less a pyrrhic statement than a story of a man perpetually in transit. And notice how the story begins outside of Texas, employing a focus that’s musically all over the map from blues and Americana to roots rock and rock ‘n’ roll. The band subverts what the detestable label, “Texas music,” could sound like.
The name Band of Heathens is also a bit of a misnomer. It conjures an ungodly group of rabble-rousing speed metal thrashers. Instead, the quintet makes Biblical allusions such as John 14:1 in the spiritual “Let Your Heart Not Be Troubled.” While not exactly a defining facet of their music, some songs are framed in a religious perspective. “Shine a Light,” for instance, is simply uplifting with its hymnal organ and call-and-response chant from Jurdi and Quist in the background. A song fit for a tent revival, Brooks sang, “You got to open up and shine your lovin’ light on me.”
All multi-instrumentalists, the main Heathens all share writing and publishing credits that allow the band to craft an array of styles and sounds on record and on stage. One would only need to look at the crowd’s t-shirts: among the Heathens superfans was an old man wearing a Lynyrd Skynyrd t-shirt, another donning Led Zeppelin, and a minor wearing The Who as he lovingly sang the band’s songs to his girlfriend.
by Joshua Barajas
Antone’s
Austin, Texas
Part of the experience of seeing the Band of Heathens live is watching the vocal and guitar interplay among the three singer-songwriters. They are backed by a rhythm section with bassist Seth Whitney and drummer John Chipman and with pianist Trevor Nealon providing flourishes. The principal players dueled guitars throughout the set with each voice distinct from the other. Known for their jamming, free-wheeling tendencies, it was not uncommon to hear two extended solos in a song. Opening with the Hunter S. Thompson tribute, “L.A. County Blues,” the three harmonized on the chorus: “We’re burning down Las Vegas Town, had to sleep by noon.” But it’s less a pyrrhic statement than a story of a man perpetually in transit. And notice how the story begins outside of Texas, employing a focus that’s musically all over the map from blues and Americana to roots rock and rock ‘n’ roll. The band subverts what the detestable label, “Texas music,” could sound like.
The name Band of Heathens is also a bit of a misnomer. It conjures an ungodly group of rabble-rousing speed metal thrashers. Instead, the quintet makes Biblical allusions such as John 14:1 in the spiritual “Let Your Heart Not Be Troubled.” While not exactly a defining facet of their music, some songs are framed in a religious perspective. “Shine a Light,” for instance, is simply uplifting with its hymnal organ and call-and-response chant from Jurdi and Quist in the background. A song fit for a tent revival, Brooks sang, “You got to open up and shine your lovin’ light on me.”
All multi-instrumentalists, the main Heathens all share writing and publishing credits that allow the band to craft an array of styles and sounds on record and on stage. One would only need to look at the crowd’s t-shirts: among the Heathens superfans was an old man wearing a Lynyrd Skynyrd t-shirt, another donning Led Zeppelin, and a minor wearing The Who as he lovingly sang the band’s songs to his girlfriend.
by Joshua Barajas
