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BAND SPEAK
by MATT THOMPSON
VELUM
Rich Tumbow—vocals
Ben Holst—lead guitar
Sean McCullough—piano
Jeff Schaefer—rhythm guitar, cello
Darren Staley—drums
Franher Joseph—bass
Athens sextet Velure plunders the mines of
rock and roll's past and adds a few modem
touches for a fresh rock sound. Formed over a
year ago, the outfit draws from such influences
as the mighty Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley and adds
a bit of funk for a sound that resembles early
Little Feat. Not a "jam band" necessarily Velure
is able to stretch out into some commanding
grooves and show a fun-loving sense of humor
lyrically.
The band's genesis came out of the local
outfit The Avenues, a band formed by
Connecticut expatriate Ben Holst (also of Six
Shades Blue and a major collaborator with the
'Damn! Show"). Members drifted in and out, and
the band was looking for another creative focus
when singer-songwriter Rich Tumbow came
aboard in the summer of 1998. Since then, the
lineup has solidified with Six Shades Blue mem
bers Darren Stanley and Franher Joseph, and the
recent addition of rhythm guitarist-cellist Jeff
Schaefer.
Velure recently finished a four-song EP
recorded at Elixir Recordings and hopes to get
work started on a full-length debut
available sometime next Spring.
Tumbow speaks:
How has the band evolved over the
last two years?
"First and foremost, the band's
really coalesced in terms of team
work. This is the tightest team we've
had, and all the guys are focused and
really dedicated to get what needs to
get done done."
What is the Athens scene like?
"It's weird because we're squeezed
between a rock and a hard place. On
one hand, you have this punk scene and on the
other hand, you have this jam band scene that
goes on forever. And in another comer, you have
the whole experimental scene. Actually, I kinda
like it. There's room for it here."
So why should someone come see you?
"It's wild. We try to pride ourselves on being
one of the few bands in Athens that really gives
people a show. We're gonna be having the horn
section from the UGA band, and half the guys
are in Six Shades Blue and the other half is part
of the Damn! Show band, so we've all been
around. It's danceable and it's fun."
Velure plays the 40 Watt Club with Field Trip on
Thursday, August 24.
JUPITER COYOTE
John Felty—guitar
Sanders Brightwell—bass
Matthew Mayes—vocals, guitar, guitjo (electric
banjo), acoustic guitar
Steve Trismen—fiddle
Noel Felty—drums
Jupiter Coyote celebrated its 10-year anniver
•sary recently with the release of a ripping new
live album and a reaffirmed dedication to its
music. The band recently relocated to Brevard,
NC (boyhood home of members Matthew Mayes
and John Felty) from Macon (by way of Atlanta)
and gained a new member in drummer Noel
Felty. Coyote is plan
ning tc get back into
the studio this
winter for its fifth
studio album, due
out this spring.
The band formed
in Brevard, NC in
1990 after Mayes and
original drummer
Matt Trevitt spent
two years jamming in
a farmhouse. As the
idea for the band coalesced, members came and
went, and Jupiter Coyote released its debut
Cemeteries & Junkyards in 1993. The band's
sound has a distinctly Southern feel, thanks to
three-part harmonies, touches of bluegrass—
particularly from Mayes' "guitjo," an electric
banjo—and Duane Allman/Lowell George-style,
jazz-influenced, Southern Rock without the
"bohemian noodling." The band has b«iilt up a
hardcore following in the South through inten
sive touring, playing sometimes 300 dates a
year, which it has scaled back considerably.
Mayes speaks:
What's the main difference between then and
now beyond just different members?
The way the group has matured in our
playing and songwriting, mainly. That is the
only way to go if you're serious about your
music. That's the development playing 10 years
will get you, and it's still developing. I don't
think Coyote's near where it could be. Right now,
even 10 years into it, we feel we're not nearly
the band we could be. We're just scratching the
surface."
How do you maintain a connection with your
audience?
"We don't give a damn if you're a frat boy or
a hippie or whatever when you come to see us.
If you can get through the door and act right,
come see us. They all seem to get along and
enjoy it when we
play, and that's good.
I see a pretty diverse
crowd, age-wise.
Really, you got two
kinds of people in
this world: good folks
and assholes. The
rest is irrelevant."
What attracts this
diverse crowd to
Coyote?
"Our music's honest and straight from the
heart. It's not a big deal, really, just a real down-
to-earth kind of thing. No bullshit in it."
What's it like dealing with the stigma that
comes along with the "jam band" scene?
"There's a good and bed to it. You turn on
one audience but alienate another. We don't just
sit there and jam all night; we try to let people
know we're not a group that Dla/s three songs in
an hour-and-a half set. We mix it up and gauge
where to go from how the crowd is reacting to it
Some people like the jams ana some people like
the shorter songs, and some people like both. We
try to keep a little bit for everyone."
Jupiter Coyote plays the Georgia Theatre
Saturday, August 26.
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