Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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rn And now Vm going straight to hell Story and Photos by Robert Fleming Assistant Encore Editor If you didn’t heed our advice Thursday and venture down 1-26 to the Music farm in Charleston, you missed out on a true rock ’n’ roll experi ence. The combined power of Hank Williams III and The Reverend Horton Heat manhandled the capacity crowd with a sonic assault of sound. Hank Ih and The Damn Band First to the stage was Hank Wiliams IH. Williams is the grandson to countryfolk legend Hank Williams and son to Monday Night Football’s own Hank williams Jr. He waltzed onto tne stage adorned in a shredded Misfits shirt and a cowboy hat. What followed was a hybrid of country-punk that mir rored his appearance. On his album, Williams’ vo cals were compared with his grandfather’s, but in front of this crowd, they were filled with enough aggression and attitude to start a riot. After two blistering songs, Williams told the crowd “some times we play more straightforward country, but in front of a rock crowd, we like to get a little crazy” And with that, the show blasted on. Williams was backed by The Damn Band, which was nothing short of excellent. Ear-shat tering lead guitar was supplied by Duane Denison of the Jesus Lizard. Williams continued to com mand the stage throughout the rest of his set. He broke down all the ideas and legends that surround his name and worked the diverse crowd of punks, greasers, rednecks and regulars into a frenzy for the Reverend to preach his gospel to. The Reverend Horton Heat No sooner had the crowd caught it’s breath then the lights dimmed, signaling the sermon’s start. Guitar resounded through the air and the lights flashed red as the opening chords to “Big Sky,” the first track off of his 1994 album Liquor in the Front, were played. Dressed in a Sunday suit of dark orange with blue sequined flames, the Reverend took to the stage. To his left stood Jirnbo with his massive stand-up bass covered in flames and signatures. To their rear was Scott Churilla, who started up the beat, and the ser mon was under way. The masses responded with yelling, dancing and the occasional flasher. The Reverend’s hands flew along the pearl white gui tar strapped across his shoulder, and Jimbo pound ed the bass as if he were beating the devil out of it. Just when the song was coming to a close, the Rev erend launched into the solos that signaled the be ginning of “Baddest of the Bad,” the second song front Liquor in the Front, and the sermon kept on. The show hardly reached a slow point. The Reverend and Jintbo kept the crowd entertained throughout the night with a number of tricks they’ve mastered through the years of preaching. During “Five-o Ford,” they crossed instruments and played hall bass and hall guitar without ever losing the rhythm. About midway through the show, the Reverend asked the crowd; “How many of you working at your of fice, or cubical, or surf ing on the Net are in terrupted by girls flashing their tops to you?” The crowd re sponded with a general “none.” “I must have one of the best jobs in the world, then, the Reverend said cracking a slight smile. The Reverend introduced several new “psalms” throughout the night from his forthcoming album Spend a night In the Box, all of which re ceived a great response from the crowd. But the biggest cheers came when they played older songs. “Wiggle Stick,” “400 Bucks” and “Bales of Cocaine,” off of the 1993 album Full Custom Gospel Sounds, kept the crowd shouting for more. And that’s what they got. The final song was a red-hot version of “The Devil’s Chasing Me” in which Jimbo laid the bass down on its side and played it while the Rev erend stood on top of it, giving the masses an ear ful of his lightning-quick guitar work. At the end, Jimbo tossed his bass up in the air and they left the stage. The only noise that filled the Farm was the chanting of the crowd. But the sermon wasn’t over yet. The Reverend took the stage again to preach out an encore to the crowd of sinners. This time, he pulled way back into his choirbook, and they played “Bad Reputation” off of the debut album Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em. The Reverend then yelled, “It’s a psychobilly freakout,” signaling the beginning of the song' of the same name, and the crowd responded by... well, freaking out. About halfway through the song, the Reverend brought the song to a halt to tell the tale of a prayer session that went horribly awry. And then the song con tinued on. But the sermon wasn’t over. The Rev erend had one more parable up his sleeve. The Reverend pulled out all the stops for the final song of the evening, “Big Red Rocket of Love.” Churrila played a drum solo like a man pos sessed. The Reverend sent out the call of “Hal lelujah,” and the crowd called it back to him. Jim bo once again laid the bass down on its side so the Reverend could ascend above the crowd to play the final solo of the evening. And with that, the sermon ended. The crowd laid their praises and thanks upon the Reverend for giving them salvation that night. The Reverend, in turn, took the time to per sonally talk to anyone who wanted to thank him for their salvation. The crowd slowly left the Farm, and the Reverend packed up his sermons and head ed off to preach to a new flock..But anyone who was there at the show knew that they were sinners I before witnessing The Reverend Horton Heat. And now... well (see headline). Spend A Night In The Box * -> XX t /2 out of -> * l5f -> The Texas rockabilly rebel has returned. The Reverend Horton Heat is back in a big way. Cur rently tearing a path across the country, the Rev erend is touring in support of his latest release, Spend a Night in the Box. Spend a Night in the Box is the first full-length album from the band in almost three years, (not including the greatest hits album Holy Roller, re leased last year). This album also represents the first album for the trio on the Time Bomb Record ings label. But while the label might be new, the music is still the mix of rockabilly, punk, swing, surf and country that has come to define the Rev I erend’s sound over the past 10 years. Spend a Night in the Box is a thankful throwback to the I older sound of the Reverend rather than the slight ly overproduced sound that was represented on their last album, Spaceheater. The songs sound a lot more like a live show (Above) Jim Heath aka the Reverend Horton Heat, shows off during one of his many guitar solos Thursday night at the Music Farm in Charleston. (Upper left) Hank Williams III and guitarist feed off each other during their opening perfor mance. (Below) The Reverend Horton Heat’s bassist Jimbo salutes the Music Farm crowd. than a studio production. This achievement in sound can be attributed to Paul Leary, lead guitarist of the Butthole Surfers, who was chosen as produc er. The results of the album speak for them selves. The title track, “Spend a Night in the Box,” stands up as one of the best songs the band has ever recorded. The Reverend continues to prove that he’s one of the best guitarists on the market with outstanding solo work on tracks like “Big D Boo gie Woogie” and “The Girl In Blue.” “The Bed room Again” is a straightforward honky-tonk coun try tune you might expect to hear on some AM station out in the Midwest. And “The Million aire” holds its own with any other of the instru mentals hke “Big Sky” off Liquor in the Front and “Beer” off Full Custom Gospel Sounds. The Reverend Horton Heat has always been known to deliver albums filled with a mix of all kinds of sounds. Spend a Night in the Box contin ues in that tradition. It’s no grand departure for the band But if the departure was going to keep along the path the band set out on Spaceheater, I’m glad they changed course. The Reverend Horton Heat has once again laid down an album that lets you know exactly where he’s coming from, where he’s been and where he’s going. And the way this al bum sounds, it’s a good thing to know.