With songs such as Someone Picked My Flower
Broke Down Pick-Up Truck Blues and Hot Rod Road rockabilly locals Wailin' Elroys love to make punksters dance to its twangy, old-timin' blues.
While they appreciate their country fans, the members of Wailin' Elroys said they prefer playing to a heavy rock or punk crowd because of its unbridled energy.
They're a lot less particular about our form of music said John Borchard, lap-steel guitar player. They're more interested in 'is it fun? Do I like it?'
The group's songs are just as fast as heavy rock or punk, songs and just as fun to dance to, said Bram Riddlebarger, lead singer and flattop guitar player.
Wailin' Elroys' traditional country themes of drinking, women and cars are complemented by Riddlebarger's coarse honky-tonk vocals and ample instrumentals that fill the void left by the lack of a drummer.
It's really an acoustic form of music
with the base of my guitar; it's pretty organic in that sense
Riddlebarger said.
Ralph Stanley, the Soggy Bottom Boys and other O' Brother
Where Art Thou? soundtrack constituent would appreciate Wailin' Elroys' juke-joint hillbilly music, but most rockabilly fans have mixed reactions to their music because it doesn't exactly fit the genre's mold, Riddlebarger said.
We don't dress like Elvis and play 'Blue Suede Shoes
' Borchard said. But he added that people could definitely do some Elvis the pelvis moves to their songs.
There's no set pattern to anything we're doing onstage
which is why the most fun part I have about (being in) this band is
really every show is going to be different in a very real sense of the term
Riddlebarger said.
From the baseline to the guitar solos, nothing is stagnant with the Wailin' Elroys, Riddlebarger said, including the lineup.
Since Riddlebarger and bassist Justin Rayner formed the band in 2002, the group added Borchard in 2004. Guitarist Zeb Preacher Dewar and Bernie Nau on accordion play on and off with the group; this Friday, all five will perform.
In February 2004, the locals signed with German-based recording label Rhythm Bomb Records and re-released their debut album, Cheap Motel
that June under the label.
After a tour of Europe, they followed suit with their sophomore album Route 33
