“More fun than Riverbend”
Simulcast to overseas service
personnel highlights evening
Jeff Birchfield of Still Kickin’ picks his way into the hearts of the crowd at the Battle of the Bands in Seymour Saturday night. Photo by David Grimes
With a gargantuan slate of tasty talent yet to display, Big Mama’s Karaoke Café
and the Tennessee Productions, Inc.’s Battle of the Bands, co-sponsored
by the South Knox · Seymour Times has expanded to include Friday nights
as well as Saturday evenings.
Since each band now has a chance to be featured on a brand-new
television show, KnoxRocks.TV, airing each Saturday night at 11:30 pm
on MyVLT2, as well as competing for a raft of incredible prizes, the tension is ratcheting up as crunch-time approaches.
Christian rock quartet Public Decision
debuted Saturday evening’s entertainment, laying down a swift set of
upbeat originals while the sun climbed down the sky. Leveraging the
clean good looks of lead vocalist Bekah Daniels and string-bending
guitarist Josh Lacey, the fulsome foursome faced down the crowd with
seriously infectious grins.
Josh “K” Kirkpatrick and Derek “Animal” Stokes kept a steady beat on
bass and drums, respectively, occasionally turning out a tricky
side-step rhythm throughout their nine-song set. While much of their
music is firmly grounded in pop progressions, the outfit was not averse
to scaling up the sound for a bigger presence during key passages.
“Our name reflects how we want everyone to know that following Jesus is
a choice we’ve made before the world,” said Daniels in a post-show
interview.
Taking it home for avid listeners next was southern-rock quintet Still
Kickin’, a sizzling five-piece of deep-fried blues with a side of Cajun
spice. Fronted by vocalist and bassist Scott Sharp, who shares vocal
and song-writing duties with Joe “Piece of the Rock” Perock on rhythm
guitar, the outfit quickly began blazing through a set of original
compositions steeped in the deep traditions of southern rock.
Deft, Claptonesque trills and bends cooked up by lead guitarist Jeff
Birchfield, a master chef of the fretboard, were prepared slightly
salted by fellow guitarist Steven Fine and drummer Eddie
McDaniels, before being served up piping-hot to the audience’s delight.
“These are the words of a simple man,” go the lyrics of the band’s tune
Sunday Afternoons, and all their words rang both simple and true as the
sun set Saturday.
“It’s great that kids today have a place to play like I never had,
Birchfield told the Times. “I’ve played on the back of flatbed trucks
in a pasture in Sand Mountain, Alabama. The sheriff’s department rolled
up as I was playing Amazing Grace, and I looked up and the only people
left from the crowd was me and my mom.”
“I kept playing,” he said. “They left, saying ‘We must have gotten a wrong call.’”
Birchfield was highly impressed with the production values at the
Battle. “We opened for Chicago at Riverbend in Chattanooga in 1996, and
this is more fun than that was.”
As darkness fell and the stars came out in earnest, the big lights on
the state-or-the-art outdoor stage picked out Southbound Express, back
for an encore performance from Spring Fling. Rolling into town on
railcar packed solid with classic southern rock and country blues, the
quintet crafted another solid set of cover tunes.
Passing vocal duties back and forth as easily as they traded licks, the
quintet picked and grinned their way through standards with an
accomplished pride. Crystal-clear pedal steel from Jim Eller blended
masterfully with Arthur Clabo and Ross Helton’s lead guitars, and Gary
Schuldt’s solid bass and Bobby McMahan’s crisp percussion kept a steady
backbeat.
Putting the final shine on the gem-studded evening, the Dirt Road Drifters
took the stage to a roar of approval. With a simulcast on America’s
Freedom Broadcast Radio beaming out to overseas service personnel
serving their country, the Drifters ignited the crowd with it’s own
brand of country, behind the twangy vocals of Nashville recording
artist John Fee.
As couples slow-danced on the verges of the audience and youthful
attendees boogied in front of the stage, vocalist and Karaoke Café
favorite Mike Edwards helped lead a mix of covers and originals, while
lead guitarist Ronnie Appelmon put pick to metal in front of the low-end
thump of Mike Davis' bass and Mark Aceves' tight percussion.
Putting their own special spin on the mix of country and bluegrass
standards on display Saturday, the quintet brewed up a tasty mix for a
burgeoning crowd.
Attending the Battle of the Bands couldn’t be simpler, and five dollars
buys admission for an entire night’s worth of stellar talent in Seymour
each weekend. Don’t forget to log on to www.karaokecafe.com, where you
can view and download audio and video of every band’s live performance
and post-show interview to your computer or handheld device, and vote
for your favorite performers. Pack up the family and show up at
Big Mama’s Karaoke Café, where the fun - and the music - never stops.
