Wednesday, June 24, 1998

Slobberbone just gives audiences that good old rock 'n' roll music

By GREG JAKLEWICZ / Abilene Reporter-News

Rock 'n' roll is making a comeback, thanks to bands like Slobberbone.

The band with the outrageous name -- "our cross to bear," said lead singer Brent Best -- is helping lift rock out of the grunge-alternative muck. An impressive music critic for the New York Times called Slobberbone "a Texas band that sets out to split the difference between Lynyrd Skynyrd and Nirvana."

Crank up the cut "Lame" and think Bodeans, at their best.

Though from nearby Denton, Slobberbone is taking a break from a coast-to-coast touring schedule to make its first visit to Abilene. They play Bob's Wednesday night.

Slobberbone is touring its disc "Barrel Chested," an aptly named recording that sounds like four good ol' boys sticking out their chests with a dare-me attitude. They sing about being down-and-out in love and life, resorting to that old standby -- getting drunk. Throw in a git-tar solo like a few ice cubes in a glass of bourbon and you get a southern rock concoction that hasn't been heard in a while.

"Give me something on the guitar," Best sings, accepting his fate and turning loose picker Jess Barr.

The band evolved from a half-hearted music effort that Best called a "a loud punkish guitar band" that finally clicked when he brought his "countryish" tunes to the table.

"At some point we decided, 'Let's really do it,' " Best said. A party band that played parking lots and beer stores, they recorded an album titled "Crow Pot Pie" that drew "a pretty good response," he said.

"It tell people it's rock -- I let them discover the other parts of it," said Best, a fan of bands like The Long Riders and Jason and the Scorchers who's reluctant to join the No Depression movement. "There is a tendency to lump bands together, but it's a pretty varied field. We don't sound like BRF-49. We've see people walk in to our shows (expecting that) and walk right back out."

The band signed with Austin's Doolittle and was put on the road. They've even been to Europe -- and are going again in August -- and Europe has come to them. A hit in Holland, a Dutch film crew came to this year's South X Southwest music event to do a piece on the Denton band.

"I never expected it to get this far," admitted Best, who has a film degree only recently dropped his day job at a warehouse. "I'm still a little incredulous. I'm still cautious because everything happens slow for this band."

As for the name, it's certainly one to remember. The guys were playing gigs and needed a name for posters. When in doubt, watch a friend's dog work over a bone. Slobberbone it was and still is, despite concerns by the label and others.

"In the spirit of punkishness, we decided to keep it," said Best. "It's our cross to bear."

Slobberbone and The Calways from Dallas are on stage at Bob's, 1062 S. 2nd, at 8 p.m. Wednesday. There is no admission charge.