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| Local spotlight: Tramps & Thieves release long-awaited LP | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| By Chris Hansen Orf, Get Out | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| July 25, 2006 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
But when J. Scott Howard and Emmett DeGuvera of Tempe country rock band Tramps & Thieves were hanging out at fabled Mill Avenue club Long Wong's a few years ago, the two singer/songwriters got into a discussion with a couple of local music fans about it. “They were talking about some of the bands that played Long Wong's,” DeGuvera says. “And they just started ranting about these ‘(expletive) Mill Avenue Cowboys.’ ” The phrase became the title of Tramps & Thieves’ acoustic debut EP, recorded as Howard, DeGuvera and bassist/vocalist Andy Jensen were coming together as a band before drummer Ryan Ferguson was in the fold. “Right before ‘Mill Avenue Cowboys’ came out, it was right before we got Ryan,” Jensen says. “So for the last two years we've been selling a CD at shows that isn't really a representation of what we sound like.” The band's stellar new disc, “Spittin’ Into the Wind,” captures Tramps & Thieves as their growing fan base has seen them during the past few years at Tempe clubs such as Yucca Tap Room and Last Exit Bar & Grill. Live, with Ferguson and Jensen laying down the foundation, DeGuvera strums acoustic guitar, and Howard picks a Telecaster like a seasoned Nashville pro. “Spittin’ Into the Wind,” featuring 16 of the band's tried and true club-tested tunes, captures in the studio what the band is capable of on stage. “Now when people see us live they can get a CD of what we really sound like,” Jensen says. “It's real cathartic, finally putting those songs out,” Howard says. “There's a lot of songs that have been a long time coming that are finally coming out,” DeGuvera says. “It feels great to get them all out — there's a lot of new songs that we want to work on.” Just a few years ago on Mill Avenue, the twang of live country music could be heard wafting out of such bars as Balboa Cafe, Ziggy's and Long Wong's, as artists such as Earl C. Whitehead and the Grievous Angels, The Revenants, Dave Insley, The Nitpickers, and Tramps & Thieves introduced country music to the mostly rock clubs. With all the aforementioned Mill Avenue clubs closed and with Earl C. Whitehead and the Grievous Angles and The Nitpickers disbanded and Dave Insley now a resident of Austin, Texas, Tramps & Thieves are the last band from Tempe's underground country golden age still standing, a testament to their friendship and collective ambition. “We're really fortunate,” Howard says. “There are worse dudes to be in a band with than these guys.” >> Tramps & Thieves perform 9 p.m. Friday, July 28, at Last Exit Bar & Grill, 1425 W. Southern Ave., Tempe. $5. (480) 557-6656. Contact Chris Hansen Orf by email, or phone (480) 898-5684 |
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