The Band of Heathens

The Band of Heathens (BOH) are Colin Brooks, Ed Jurdi, Gordy Quist, Seth Whitney and John Chipman, an Americana (if you must select a genre) band from Austin, Texas who stopped by Harry O’s in Park City, Utah on January 14, 2010 to blow the minds off a few hundred unsuspecting skiers on their incredible odyssey which could also be called a non-stop US tour. A quick look at their tour schedule and you will see that a days off are few and far between for this hard working band. Their arrival in the Rockies coincided brutal Utah cold snap, high temps in the teens and lows well below zero, I wondered how these Southern boys would fare in what could only be described as a perverse trick my ole ma nature, and bless their hearts the Heathens did all they could to improve the situation by bringing the heat to their show Thursday night. They had this skier infested venue swingin full tilt by end of the first couple songs.

I had the good fortune of being allowed a brief and informal interview with the gang before the show, however I did manage an world class slip up before going down to the basement for the interview when I made the crazy mistake of asking Gordy if he was with the warm up band, well he did have ski cap on and looked so familiar. As it turns out he was connected to the warm up band, Bryon Friedman, he roomed with him at college for a while, can you say small world syndrome?

I followed Gordy deep into the bowels of the venue, bizarre carpet patterns caused me to loose my professional edge and I almost instantly began yammering about a very bizarre array of topics ranging from Hunter S. Thompson to world record held by Seth, the bass player. I plopped down deeply into a coach where Ed Jurdi was seated and Gordy pulled up a chair, they seemed so young, you know how YouTube has a tendency of making people seem older, or maybe that’s just me, anyway I asked them how in hell they can tour so extensively, with virtually no days off? “It’s easy we love it” Ed replied, now I have to stop right here and tell you something about Ed Jurdi.

I shot this band last summer in Denver and I got a shot of Ed with his reflective Ray Ban’s on (see below) and damned if he wasn’t the spitting (or is it splitting?) image of Jesus, or at least the Jesus I had brainwashed into my little Caucasian head, well maybe a bit cooler than Jesus, but if Jesus had been given access to a pair of Ray Ban’s  I’m sure this is what he would look like.

Just think for a minute of how the history of the world might have changed if we Mr. J could have hidden those compassionate, loving and forgiving eyes of his with a pair of reflective Ray Ban’s, I’m thinking those tough as Roman’s would have been shaking in their boots if J would have just given them a cold hard reflective stare, reflecting their bad ass Roman head gear and garb right back at em, I wonder if … well never mind, I diverge, back to music, and the interview.

Next question, “So have you guys stayed in touch with ole Crash” I asked. After a moment someone recalled the infamous Crash, some dude that broke into their dressing room somewhere along the way and stated “Damn I never heard of you guys before a month ago and now you are are my favorite band in the world” followed quickly by “Wanna get high?” The Heathens sensed that this reporter/photographer from deep behind the curtain had done his home work and wasn’t about to be satisfied with the normal array of questions like “When’s your next album coming out?” or “What do you think of  Taylor Swifts latest song?” no, no no, I wanted to hit hard, go deep, so I blurted out “How was Crash’s stash? Someone said “Not bad, but not nearly as good as ours”. I smiled knowing full well I was sitting with like minded individuals who could see right through my short hair cut and mo-mo disguise, I felt calm, happy and honored to be sharing with a band of this caliber.

Next question, so who’s the Hunter S. Thompson fan here? “We all are really”, I dig deeper, “So LA County Blues is obviously a nod to Hunter eh? As soon as the question left my lips I knew that it was such a stupid question that my cover as someone cool must been blown for sure, but the Heathens treated me with Southern hospitality and did not say “Well no shit Sherlock, what was your first clue, the reference to Ether or Raoul Duke? “ But they did neither, maybe my showing my business card with the HST quote “The music business is a long cruel shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free and good men die like dogs. There is also a negative side.” saved my ass and my credibility.

I’m not sure but like the great photo journalist I am I immediately shifted subjects and blurted out “BFE WY” “I read on your Tweet that you were being starred at through a pair of binoculars by red necks deep in the wind blow abyss called Wyoming.” “Better than being starred at through a rifle scope” the Tweet continued. Then someone said BFE, what’s that stand for anyway” I leaped at the chance to redeem myself and provided the standard definition of BFE or Bum F&^k Egypt, then Ed said “We always used to say East Bum F&#k”. EBF? now I was confused, had I missed something, shit I hate it when I think I’ve missed something, especially something perceived to be humorous. Oh well, what would Hunter do (WWHD), forge ahead, stay in control of the dialog, take the initiative or take more drugs whatever cane first, I wanted to ask them something so simple yet profound that their minds would twist and shout “Let me the f*@k out of this Utah rat hole and out of the clutches of this incisive and  penetrating  hip cat photo journalist” but alas, I simply thanked them for their time and stumbled back upstairs, into the throngs of over indulgent out of state would be skiers, all blathering on and on about the fine time they had that day, puffing the stuff and making tracks in the fluffy white powder.

The Heathens appeared on stage and promptly proved why they were chosen as the best new band of the year in Austin. I heard so many influences in this band, primarily I would say I thought of Little Feat, one of my all time favorite Bands or maybe the legendary band, The Band. Lowell George and Robbie Robertson are my musical gods and it only seemed right that Jesus was on stage helping us all get right with Music Gods.

Most bands are lucky to have one good singer, one good guitar player and maybe if they’re lucky one good songwriter, this band has three great singers, three killer guitarists and all three are powerful  poets and songwriters, Every time one of them takes the lead vocal you’d swear an entirely different band had taken the stage, like chameleons the band changed tone color, tempo and beat dynamically behind the current lead singer effortlessly creating yet another provocative and beautiful song.

To say this band is great would be accurate, to say I loved the show would be an understatement, to say this band is going places seems obvious, just do me and them a favor, buy their music, like their latest work “One Step Into The Ether” then seek them out, they never stop touring, see their show, you will be very glad you did, and will sit for days recalling the show like I have, feeling very fortune to have witnessed rare greatness in the modern music scene,

The Heathens are first and foremost a live band, and the production on this song actually showcases their chops better than their two previous live albums. Formed as the Good Time Supper Club from the simultaneous sets of the three singers and writers, things congeal for them on “L.A. County Blues” to the point where they create something better than the sum of three good singer-songwriters — a loose, organic feel with a great mix that shows off all the best things about them: Colin Brooks’ nasal, Lowell George-breathed slide, Gordy Quist’s ace high harmony, and Jurdi’s husky tenor. Genres can be analyzed and categorized, and hidden meaning can be found everywhere, but when something works, it works. The simple, well-told story of an American iconoclast,”L.A. County Blues”  feels good, and that is sufficient for me.

The three principal songwriters – Colin Brooks, Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist shared the bill at Momo’s, an Austin club. Originally, each singer/songwriter performed his own set, however they eventually started sharing the stage, and collaborating together with bassist Seth Whitney. The Wednesday night series was billed as “The Good Time Supper Club”. A misprint in a local paper billed the act as “The Heathens.” In 2007, drummer John Chipman joined the band. Also notable is a version of “Aint No More Cane”,a traditional prison work song of the American south. The Austin, Texas-based Band of Heathens included their distinctive arrangement of the old song on their “Live at Momo’s” album. In November, 2008 The Americana Music Association announced the Top 100 Albums on the Americana Chart for 2008 and The Band of Heathens came in at No. 8, thus referencing the Band Of Heathens Album as the 8th most played record as charted on the Americana Airplay Chart for 2008. news|url=http://americanamusic.org/site.php?content=2008_Top_100

Discography

The first two recordings were live – a live album at Momo’s was recorded in 2006, and in 2007, “Live at Antone’s” with a DVD/CD set was completed. In May 2008, the band released its first studio production titled “The Band of Heathens”, produced by Ray Wylie Hubbard, which charted at #1 on the Americana Charts and the EuroAmericana charts. What is significant however is that it was only the second independently released album to ever reach #1 on the Chart.

Colin Brooks (solo)

§ 2002: Blood & Water

§ 2005: Chippin’ Away at the Promised Land

Gordy Quist (solo)

§ 2005: Songs Play Me

§ 2007: Here Comes the Flood

Ed Jurdi (solo)

§ 2000: Ed Jurdi

§ 2005: Longshores Drive

The Band of Heathens

§ 2006: Live from Momo’s

§ 2007: Live at Antone’s (CD+DVD)

§ 2008: The Band of Heathens, (first studio production)

§ 2009: Live @ Blue Rose Christmas Party Germany 2008 (limited edition)

§ 2009: One Foot In the Ether, (second studio production)

The CD captures the soul of what The Heathens are as a roots and soul-driven band that can deliver four or five variations of every song they play. The CD is a combination of the styles of the three frontman-singer-songwriter personalities of Colin Brooks, Gordy Quist, and Ed Jurdi, all backed up by the tight rhythm section of John Chipman and Seth Whitney. Hubbard and Morlix play on the record as well.

Brooks, Quist, and Jurdi are the soul of the band with separate styles that meld to create the Heathens’ wonderful blend of musical stew. All singers, all songwriters, and all great guitarists and players, the nexus of these three masters makes The Heathens a force of nature that will not be contained. All the songs on the record were written or co-written by the three with Adam Carroll credited with Quist for the poetry of “Maple Tears.” Most bands are lucky to have one good songwriter in the group and super lucky to have two. This band has three poets who can deliver at the top of anyone’s lyrical game. They all three are songwriting treasures.

The Band of Heathens is a CD that may very well be the best Americana record of 2008. While many of the songs on the CD have been live favorites for some time, the studio versions are a welcome polish to the shine that has become The Band of Heathens live experience. The songs are softer with clear and understandable lyrics and all the production value that should come with a studio record. However, it is not over-produced or slick. It is still a rootsy record that delivers good music like a studio record should, leaving the listener with the desire to see the live performances of the studio mixed tunes. All the tunes are superbly delivered to the ears and to mention any one would slight the others. All eleven are excellent renditions.

Adding to Hubbard’s and Morlix’s extra musicianship on the CD are Patty Griffin with harmony vocals on three of the tracks, and Stephen Bruton with mandolin on three songs.

The Band of Heathens has been compared to “The Band,” “The Eagles,” and a few other great bands. Comparisons aside “The Heathens” are just themselves and that is better than good enough. The Band of Heathens self-titled studio project is one of the best Americana records ever made. It will not be long before Americana fans from around the world know about The Band of Heathens, and that is a good thing.

COLIN BROOKS — Guitar, Dobro, Lapsteel, Vocals

ED JURDI — Guitar, Keys, Harmonica, Vocals

GORDY QUIST — Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals

SETH WHITNEY — Bass, Vocals

JOHN CHIPMAN — Drums, Percussion

Excerpts for HST’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Raoul Duke: Ah, devil ether. It makes you behave like the village drunkard in some early Irish novel. Total loss of all basic motor skills. Blurred vision, no balance, numb tongue. The mind recoils in horror, unable to communicate with the spinal column. Which is interesting because you can actually watch yourself behaving in this terrible way, but you can’t control it. You approach the turnstiles and know that when you get there, you have to give the man two dollars or he won’t let you inside. But when you get there, everything goes wrong. Some angry rotarian shoves you and you think “What’s happening here? What’s going on?” And you hear yourself mumbling…
Ether is the perfect drug for Las Vegas. In this town they love a drunk. Fresh meat. So they put us through the turnstiles and turned us loose inside.

The only thing that really worried me was the ether. There is nothing in the world more helpless and irresponsible and depraved than a man in the depths of an ether binge, and I knew we’d get into that rotten stuff pretty soon.

The Black and White Zone

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 14th, 2010 at 10:30 pm. It is filed under Live music reviews and tagged with Harry O's, Park City, The Band of Heathens. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.