Doors 6pm, Music 7:30pm

Country Westerns

Work harder, not smarter: classically bad advice, but when it works, it works. Country Westerns are a force, punk rock lifers playing rock music with hearted-sleeves and punched-guts. They play loud and furious but with a nuance that belies their delicate and varied pedigrees.

Country Westerns sophomore album, Forgive the City, hits the streets on April 28th, 2023 via the venerable Fat Possum Records. With twelve songs in thirty minutes, it’s a tighter and faster spin on their sound. Joseph Plunket, chief songwriter and electric 12-string samurai had this to say about the album after being pressed for intel:

“Overall, it’s about partnerships. Though never planned as a concept, writing the last few songs (sometimes in the studio) I started to realize that none dealt with romantic relationships in any direct way. They’re intense songs about friendships, fellow travelers, even business associations—how exciting they can be when things begin and how disappointments, betrayals or shared success can leave just as much a mark on your life as romantic love. In the end that’s all a band is right?”

Forgive the City builds on the band's self-titled debut LP produced by guitar impresario Matt Sweeney, who says:

“I wanna make records with these fools til the wheels come off. Joey’s this iconic poetic rocker, for real. His voice is desperate and wise. His songs are too. And anyone who’s seen Harmony Korine’s movie Trash Humpers knows how Brian Kotzur can wreck a joint but have you watched him slay the drum set? Kotzur is unmatched.”

Sweeney contributed lead guitar to three stand-out tracks on Forgive The City--adding polish to the Replacements-esque pop of Wait For It, magnifying the brooding chaos of Hell, and catapulting the gloomy themes of Where I'm Going into outer space with his soaring solo.

Money on the Table, the album’s first single, was a DJ pick of the week on Nashville’s Lighting 100 with heavy rotation. The track also gained mention in Nashville Scene’s 2022 “Year in Music” issue, Brooklyn Vegan, Pitchfork, and more.

A Nashville institution in the making, Country Westerns infuse punk rock chutzpah with a classic rock sheen, yielding a sound that’s simultaneously fresh and reminiscent of all the LPs you used to “borrow” from your cool uncle. Their debut album came out in May 2020, beautifully coinciding with… a worldwide pandemic. Despite everything that cursed year threw at it, the self-titled LP survived and thrived on its many merits, receiving glowing reviews from Pitchfork (7.5), Magnet, Brooklyn Vegan, Consequence of Sound, PASTE, Glide, No Depression, Popmatters.

CWs varied inspirations are evident on their self-produced “pandemic EP” that features covers by Richard Thompson, Jad Fair, and Dead Moon. Their pedigrees also belie their musical tastes and range.

Atlanta-native Plunket started as a hardcore-kid turned singer-songwriter w/ an acoustic guitar; his first show was opening for Cat Power when he was nineteen. He traveled north and paid his dues in Brooklyn mainstays The Weight, and as a touring bassist with King Tuff and Gentleman Jesse. He eventually landed in Nashville where he befriended Brian Kotzur.

A Nashville underground music legend, Kotzur, prior to Country Westerns, drummed for indie rock luminaries Silver Jews and Crooked Fingers. His percussive talents also lead to him to play in bands with Duane Denison of The Jesus Lizard, and country legends Bobby Bare Jr. and Charlie Louvin. He also scored and performed in Harmony Korine films over the years. Korine says of his longtime colleague:

“Kotzur is one of a kind, great drummer, even better character. He cracks me up. We used to do push ups together.”

Polymath bassist Jordan Jones (formerly of LA glam rockers Easy), is the newest addition to the band, rounding out the rhythm section with the seasoned touch of a founding member.

In March, Country Westerns embark on a six-week North American tour with Titus Andronicus and will continue on the road throughout 2023 in support of Forgive the City.

https://countrywesternsband.com/

with Alex Patrick (solo)

“You may know Patrick as the frontman for Dangerbyrd, a band that plays the kind of music that was instrumental in the initial big bang of rock ‘n’ roll. His passion for the music and its history is palpable.
But The Noise began as an intentional departure from Dangerbyrd two years ago. It all started when Patrick haphazardly booked a gig without a backing band in place.
He was having trouble assembling the entire quintet, and Patrick found himself routinely turning down gigs that had been scheduled for Dangerbyrd.
His patience was running out. He was going to have to start another band. The Noise was the result.
“I was starting to get frustrated having to turn down so many gig offers,” he says. “I figured I could find something to do that was fun by the time a show that Dangerbyrd couldn’t do rolled around.”
Patrick enlisted the remaining members of Dangerbyrd — bassist Schuyler Skuse and Chris Coon, who switched from keyboards to saxophone — to play with him under The Noise banner. Drummer Aaron Mika, who had played with Skuse in the soul band The Shine, also came on board.
Despite Patrick’s leadership roles in both Dangerbyrd and The Noise, there are noticeable differences between the two acts.
Dangerbyrd is a collective of songwriters and singers who play mainly original music. Patrick considers it electrified folk with a rock 'n’ roll beat.
The Noise, on the other hand, is about pure fun, with less emphasis on rehearsing. The band provides Patrick with the opportunity to see friends, sing and scream loud, riff on guitar, and play music that deserves to be heard.
Patrick feels he’s tapping into the same musical spirit as hometown heroes such as Son House, John Ellison and the Soul Brothers Six, Greg Prevost, and Joe Beard.
“Both bands are bar bands with ultimately the same purpose — making people dance and drink — but they fit into that scenario in opposite ways,” he says.
“It's nearly all Black rock ‘n’ roll and blues music,” he says. “That is what was on my mind back then, and still even now. That music has shaped my entire life and I owe everything to it. Rock ‘n’ roll was created by Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Little Richard, queer persons of color that still don’t get the recognition they deserve.”
The Noise’s leader is keen to differentiate between a good song and a great song.
“I think a good song is one that can be interrupted and played in many fashions,” he says. “That’s what folk, blues, country, and jazz artists do. If a song can be played fast, slow, in minor or major, and still move the audience, then it’s a good song.
“A great song does that, but alters one’s life in a meaningful way. Great melodies inspire great lyrics. Those songs are forever. I hope to catch one someday.” Frank DeBlase, City

https://www.facebook.com/alex.patrick.359

Low Dough Show--$15 at the door