AJJ22
S 8 : Sent- _
Ill; Battalion
Aggielife
Page 3 • Thursday, September 3, 1998
Scorchin"
>on and The Scorchers bring ‘alternative-
untry’ sound to Shadow Canyon tonight
BY MARIUM MOHIUDDIN
Staff writer
^ ver wonder how the members
of Depeche Mode, Mighty
|iNighty Bosstones and The
je sat down and decided their
Id’smame. What determines a
le can be anything from a com-
Ition of their musical personali-
¥0 a political statement,
lo how did Jason and the
'chers arrive at their name?
'his can be summed up in an
explanation. Watch the band
m.^rutnics r anc j ^ reason f or choice
nesday aftemor^g name “scorchers” will be-
horticulturec ie apparent.
a the early ’80s country mu-
was hanging on the hits of
ny Rogers and Alabama,
Correct^ 6 journey and Styx were
the Sept. 1 ^ n 8 d on ^ ie P°P charts,
man of theC' )n anc l die Scorchers arrived
m was misquc:-
orthgate pay ic
udent use.
e lot has acto
iveral months ;
Jed to a pay lor
s and patrons:
5 not simply fo'S.
on the scene and broke away
from the softness of their prede
cessors and brought a new sound
to the music business.
The alignment of the punk and
honkey-tonk country was not a fa
miliar sound.
The band trail blazed the path
for this music. Jason and the
Scorchers were one of the first
band to combine country music
and punk.
It is now common place, but at
the time they were charting unfa
miliar territory.
They went beyond soft country
with a slight edge to intense gui
tar driven rock ’n’ roll with hard
core honky-tonk.
They were alternative country
before it existed.
Mark McKenzie, program di
rector for 103.9-FM KHLR, said
the band cannot be classified into
Ki\
■
Photos Courtesy of C. Taylor Crothers
Above: Jason and The Scorchers will play at Shadow Canyon tonight with Bare, Jr. The country-punk band has been in the music busi
ness for 17 years and is known for its high energy performances.
Bottom left: Jason and The Shockers are (from left to right) Kenny Ames (bass guitar), Jason Ringenberg (vocals), Perry Baggs
(drums) and Warner E. Hodges (lead guitar).
n in Amaz
one category because their music
crosses many genres.
“If you are interested in a di
versity of music then you should
see this band,” he said. “They
take different aspects of music
and they take many different in
fluences and they bring them all
together. The sound that they pro
duce is the signature of the band.”
Now 17 years and seven al
bums later, the band is back on
the road promoting their new live
album Midnight Roads and
Stages Seen.
Willie Bennett, talent buyer for
Shadow Canyon, said Jason and
the Scorchers cater to a wide va
riety of audiences.
“They are not the standard
country band and do not require
the standard country listener,” he
said. “This is not a two-stepping
band. They are all over the stage.
They are really rockers. They are
alternative country to the largest
extreme. ”
Bennett said they are a dy
namic band and their sound and
stage presence are hard to put
into words.
“They are really fun to watch,”
he said. “It is going to be quite a
show and one that you will not
want to miss. It will be one of
those shows that people will be
talking about the next day.”
Jason and the Scorchers are
known for their outrageous and ex
tremely energetic performances.
Ann Powers of The New York
Times goes as far as to compare
lead vocalist Jason Ringenbern to
the energetic Jerry Lee Lewis.
Many fans have gone on to say
a live performance of this band is
what rock'n’roll legends are made
of.
Warner Hodges, Jason and the
Scorchers’ guitarist, said in a
press release that the band’s roots
are embedded in live perfor
mances and is what led them to
record the Midnight Roads album.
“The way we look at it was,
this is the most important thing
we’ve done, so, let’s just go out
and have fun,” Hodges said.
“That’s how it had to happen, be
cause that’s how we’ve always
been as a live band. This record is
who we are, with all the energy
right there in front of you-and all
the freckles and pimples, too.”
Opening for Jason and the
Scorchers will be Bare, Jr. anoth
er band with roots in the country
music business.
Bennett said the whole night
will be amazing and the combi
nation of both bands will be very
entertaining.
“I am looking forward to Jason
and the Scorchers, but I am also
looking forward to their opening
act Bare, Jr.,” he said. “Bare, Jr. is
the son of Bobby Bare, one of
country music’s legends. Both of
them together is what will make
the show unforgettable.”
ay, Septedv
9:30 p.m
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