Riverboat Gamblers

Emerging from Denton, Texas, the college hub known for its university scene, the Riverboat Gamblers launched their career in September 2001 via the "Jenna Is a No Show" 7". How that slim piece of vinyl managed to contain the explosive energy of the group's fabled house-party performances at UNT remains a mystery, yet the result stood as an immediate classic. A self-titled album produced by Tim Kerr soon appeared on Vile Beat, intensifying an already blazing rock & roll blaze with an added splash of whiskey. Fronted by Teko's whooping vocals, the lineup included guitarists Freddy Castro (Fadi El-Assad) and Colin Ambulance (Colin James), bassist Spider (Pat Lillard), and drummer Jesse 3X (Jesse Hamilton). Sharing the spirit of peers such as the Catheters and Tight Bros from Way Back When, the Riverboat Gamblers embraced unrestrained 1970s cock rock and ignored any notion of restraint. Although major labels showed strong interest, fueled partly by their explosive appearance at the 2003 South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, the band instead joined the independent powerhouse Gearhead, which put out the Something to Crow About LP in June 2003. A busy touring schedule followed that summer, including runs alongside MC5, Burning Brides, and Flogging Molly. April 2005 brought a new deal with Volcom Entertainment, a slot on that summer's Warped Tour, and the April 2006 arrival of To the Confusion of Our Enemies. At that stage the core of Wiebe, Castro, and Lilliard was augmented by guitarist Ian McDougall and, later, drummer Mark Baker. The configuration held through only a handful of additional tours before former Gorilla Biscuit Luke Abbey replaced Baker behind the kit in March 2007 during a trek with Against Me!. Following the comparatively restrained 2009 album Underneath the Owl, the band delivered a harder-edged statement with 2012's The Wolf You Feed.