The Twangbangers
U.S.A. Tour Sept. 18-Oct. 13, 2001
Hightone
*** (of 5)

Hightone records is putting together a collaborative tour this fall featuring some of their best known artists. The lineup included Bill Kirchen, Redd Volkaert, Dallas Wayne and Joe Goldmark. These guys all subscribe to the twangy brand of honky tonk music I associate with classic '70s country, tight pants with flashy shirts, T-top Thunderbirds, and chicks with big perms. I love this type of music, but enjoyment is greatly enhanced with the increase of beer in the equation. I suggest you get stinkin' drunk for this show. Not that it will be bad, far from it, but alcohol will provide the rocket fuel that these guys seem to lack just a bit. Their playing is a little too precise, the production is too clean, to the point that the true grit and spit spirit behind the music doesn't quite come through. What I'm going off of is a label sampler featuring songs from all these guys' albums. The Twangbanger combination might hit it right on the head live, or it might miss horribly— it's hard to tell. One thing's for sure, they all seem pretty compatible. That's where the beer comes in. It's like life insurance at a show. If you catch an act you will see unrivaled technical proficiency (Bill Kirchen's medley of guitar legends is at the same time engrossingly entertaining and wankishly pretentious) but is that what you're really after at a honky tonk show?

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