The Band Of Heathens

Austin, Texas-based roots rock outfit the Band of Heathens crafts songs that merge present-day singer/songwriter and alt-country elements with the core influence of 1970s soft rock textures. Started by a trio of songwriters, the ensemble focuses on narratives carrying a clear Southern accent along with protagonists drawn to wayward paths, supported by understated musical settings and vocal blends. Their debut studio effort arrived as the self-titled 2008 release following two earlier live documents; 2013's Sunday Morning Record marked a sonic overhaul after substantial membership shifts, 2020's Stranger delivered reflective material amid national turmoil, and 2023's Simple Things centered on numbers about endurance amid adversity.

The Band of Heathens came together in Austin through sheer circumstance. Songwriters Colin Brooks, Gordy Quist, and Ed Jurdi each held regular slots at Momo's when they began joining one another's performances, eventually merging everything into a single event billed as the Good Time Supper Club—an informal circle of three singer/songwriters backed by the steady rhythm team of John Chipman on drums and Seth Whitney on bass. An impromptu side venture quickly evolved into a committed rock ensemble. The group's opening pair of recordings consisted of live sets, 2006's Live from Momo's and 2007's Live at Antones (also issued as a DVD), while their third outing, the self-titled The Band of Heathens, was helmed by Ray Wylie Hubbard and appeared in 2008 via BOH Records. One year later they issued One Foot in the Ether, which likewise earned favorable attention within Americana circles.

A subsequent collection, Top Hat Crown & the Clapmaster's Son, surfaced in 2011, after which personnel adjustments occurred. Vocalist/guitarist Colin Brooks departed that year, followed soon after by bassist Seth Whitney and drummer John Chipman, allowing co-leaders Ed Jurdi and Gordy Quist to reshape the unit for the 2013 album Sunday Morning Record. They incorporated drummer Richard Millsap, bassist Scott Davis, and keyboardist Trevor Nealon, and this configuration captured Duende, issued in January 2017.

For the following project the ensemble drew from an unforeseen wellspring: 2018's Message from the People Revisited presented the Band of Heathens interpreting every track from Ray Charles' 1972 album Message from the People, on which the soul figure addressed contemporary concerns. The set marked their initial release after bassist Scott Davis exited and Jesse Wilson joined in his stead. The group headed to Portland, Oregon, to collaborate with producer Tucker Martine on 2020's Stranger, a batch of tracks supplying both comfort and observation while America navigated a turbulent period. That year they also contributed to Margo Price's album That's How Rumors Get Started, and they joined Ray Wylie Hubbard among several artists on his 2022 release Co-Starring Too. They assisted Raul Malo on his 2022 album Quarantunes, Vol. 1, a set of tracks the Mavericks vocalist captured remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that same year the band put out Remote Transmissions, Vol. 1, a covers collection featuring guest vocalists on individual tracks—Butch Walker on Bob Seger's "Night Moves," Robert Ellis on Tom Petty's "Walls," Todd Snider on Guy Clark's "L.A. Freeway," and Margo Price on Lucinda Williams' "Joy," among others. Simple Things, released on BOH Records in March 2023, represented the Band of Heathens' first original material in three years and drew from songs honoring perseverance and modest triumphs against steep challenges. An extensive U.S. tour followed the album's arrival.