Whiskey Folk Ramblers
North Richland Hills, Texas, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2006 | SELF
Music
Press
"Heavenly, ascending group-sung harmonies, romantic escapism, working-class ballads sung with a poet’s grace — groups like Whiskey Folk Ramblers remind us that some things never go out of style. On … And There Are Devils, the band’s latest release, those timeless qualities are polished to a brilliant sheen. Merging ragged, Prohibition-era folk with the gunslinging guitars of a gritty Ennio Morricone spaghetti Western, this is the most assured material that Whiskey Folk has released yet. The band has always had a talent for sounding out of time and place. Songs like the gypsy heel-stomping of “Pies of Old Kylene” stand as further testament to that. Frontman Tyler Rougeux whips up an infectious, dance-worthy frenzy purely through his playful delivery of the chorus, displaying the group’s distinct, intimate knowledge of rhythm: As the players begin to rapidly shift the tempo, you’re whisked away by their charming romance, absorbed into their weary, lonesome, and moving world. On “Easy Climb,” Rougeux is backed by wheezing accordion and sunset-streaked horns. All of the songs here bloom subtly, their choruses burrowing inside you.Whiskey Folk has a knack for using every instrument to its fullest potential without cluttering its sound in the process, finding virtue in beautiful simplicity. On the midnight highway ballad “Concrete Bed,” gloomy group harmonies conjure up imagery of wandering in solitude. As lone piano keys are struck, the sound of each individual plink hair-raising, the guitar chords glisten, gracefully coming to life like a rare desert flower touched by moonlight. Other songs, such as the instrumental closer “Night of the Indian Man Morning,” glide confidently on the strength of their evocative moods, guided through the darkness by Spanish-inflected horns and sparse string arrangements. … And There Are Devils’ depiction of a mournful, haunting West is so potent, you may find yourself cherishing the dust. Songs this homespun and charming are rare antiques." — Cole Garner Hill
- Fort Worth Weekly
"Their songs, punctuated by a trumpet, accordion and haunting violin, seemed to do the trick as the crowd broke into sections of revelers trying their hands at Yemenite dance moves on a Texas two-step learning curve. Watching Whiskey Folk Ramblers play made me wonder if this is what Charlie Daniels imagined when he described the "band of demons" who joined the devil's performance before Johnny..... with a touch of the avant-garde." - Pegasus News
"Their songs, punctuated by a trumpet, accordion and haunting violin, seemed to do the trick as the crowd broke into sections of revelers trying their hands at Yemenite dance moves on a Texas two-step learning curve. Watching Whiskey Folk Ramblers play made me wonder if this is what Charlie Daniels imagined when he described the "band of demons" who joined the devil's performance before Johnny..... with a touch of the avant-garde." - Pegasus News
"As anyone who's seen their live shows can attest, the Ramblers are remarkably relaxed and confident, even verging on virtuosic, with their gentle, punchy and occasionally other-worldly blend of what might be called wayfaring music. Harmonica lines echo the '60's folk revival, banjo picks and plucks evoke the hillbilly nights of prohibition, and the cool thump and thud of the upright bass recall the shoegazers of '50's jazz clubs. The Whiskey Folk Ramblers wander not just through different styles but also across distinct eras." - Fort Worth Weekly
"As anyone who's seen their live shows can attest, the Ramblers are remarkably relaxed and confident, even verging on virtuosic, with their gentle, punchy and occasionally other-worldly blend of what might be called wayfaring music. Harmonica lines echo the '60's folk revival, banjo picks and plucks evoke the hillbilly nights of prohibition, and the cool thump and thud of the upright bass recall the shoegazers of '50's jazz clubs. The Whiskey Folk Ramblers wander not just through different styles but also across distinct eras." - Fort Worth Weekly
"Depression-Era Brilliance" - Fort Worth Weekly
"Depression-Era Brilliance" - Fort Worth Weekly
"The Ramblers sound like something you might have heard around the bonfire if a gypsy caravan and a cattle drive happened to cross trails and ended up sharing a barrel or two of whiskey." -Jesse Hughey - Dallas Observer
"WFR had the audience at its Folk-Noir hello." - DC9@Night
"WFR had the audience at its Folk-Noir hello." - DC9@Night
"The only band with the word 'whiskey' in its name that's worth a damn. If the 'Grapes of Wrath' had a happy ending, WFR would have written the soundtrack."
- Dallas Observer
"The only band with the word 'whiskey' in its name that's worth a damn. If the 'Grapes of Wrath' had a happy ending, WFR would have written the soundtrack."
- Dallas Observer
Discography
'Midnight Drifter', (2008) Full Length Album, 13 tracks
'And There Are Devils...' (2010) Full Length Album, 12 tracks
Photos
Bio
The Whiskey Folk Ramblers create music of a new sound. It's some strange, unexplored sub-genre of indie-country. Part spaghetti-western, part eastern-european folk, melded with dancehall country and with undertones of american folk and bluegrass. The style could be called Western Gypsy or Gypsy Americana.
Picked apart, you can find influences from Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash to wandering bands of gypsies in the desert. The instrumentation gives one a sense of the Appalachians, but you'd be hard-pressed to call it bluegrass. Close your eyes and you'll imagine the dusty lone gunfighter pushing through a saloon door in a Sergio Leone film.
Whiskey Folk Ramblers have been compared to the likes of contemporaries Gogol Bordello, DeVotchKa, the Pogues, Old 97's & Tom Waits.
Band Members
Links
