Blast Off Country Style

Blast Off Country Style derived its name from a Moog recording and rose from the remains of Sexual Milkshake and Two Faced Judy, establishing itself among the Teenbeat record label’s strongest and most distinctive acts throughout the 1990s. Harrisonburg, Virginia served as the formation site, where former Sexual Milkshake drummer Chris Callahan, Two Faced Judy and Don't Panic bassist Phil Sweeney, guitarist Mary McCue, and vocalist Evelyn Hurley came together. The band moved rapidly from being dismissed as a joke by earnest local players to landing a second-stage appearance at the 1994 Lollapalooza. Shortcomings in technical ability were balanced by inventive ideas, polished pop songwriting, strong stage presence, and humorous material such as “Social Firefly” (“I'm not a social butterfly, I'm a social firefly”) and “Teenage Unicorn” (“When I was a kid they never said that I'd have a horn growing through my head, but as it is I'll blow my horn cause I'm a magic unicorn”). Blast Off Country Style concerts proved essential viewing thanks to coordinated costumes, Phil Sweeney’s comical stage behavior, and Evelyn Hurley’s engaging onstage commentary, which fully offset the prevailing indie-rock groups of the early to mid-1990s that favored everyday clothing and straightforward performances intended for youthful crowds.