The Sideshow Tramps exist for those who wish that the Sex Pistols, AC/DC and Led Zepplin had formed a band together with Bob Dylan, Tom Waits and a Russian Gypsy camp.
Hayes Carll, long time fan of the band, says, “I used to come out and watch them play at Helios all the time. I have never seen anything like it.” Hank Schyma of the Southern Backtones says, “This is a new kind of rock band.”
The Sideshow Tramps come out of the tradition of peasant music and Houston’s “dirty south” music scene: gin joints, gypsy camps, street corner Kadzari, and punk dives. John Nova Lomax, relation of famous American roots music chronicler John Lomax and long time music editor of the Houston Press, says: “Both their album and live shows find folk styles from everywhere, from New Orleans, to west Virginia, to Minsk, getting tossed into a blender and coming out as ordered chaos, one of those dissolute trips to the gypsy sin palaces Russian aristocrats were always sliding into on their way to ruin in the works of Pushkin, Tolstoy, and Dostoevsky.”
They hit their audiences with a powerful high-energy show that earned them the “best stage act” from the Houston Press Music Awards. Their live show has often been called a mystical experience. Perhaps this stems from Scott McNeil’s (guitar, vocals) vast knowledge of world religions and mysticism or Craig Kinsey’s four-year stint as a monk in a secluded monastery in the Ozark Mountains. No matter the reason, it is safe to say you have never seen a show like this.
Concerning the bands music and live show Craig Kinsey (vocals, harmonica, guitar) said,
“We had this idea to produce a live show that imitated all the dynamic of coitus. To achieve this, we had to do lots of research.” Kinsey grins. “We do not have a set list. We listen to the crowd and respond to her. If something we are playing isn’t touching them the right way we move with that and flow organically until we hit the spot that is good for us, and the audience. Once there, we are relentless. Just look at the faces of people in the videos and pictures of our shows. I think you’ll see that a picture is worth a thousand words. There’s not much more I can say about it really. Music, when it is fulfilling its purpose, should be highly erotic and liberating. If I may use the words of Bon Scott, once people see our live show everybody comes and comes again.”
In their live act the band members all trade instruments, transitioning from bluegrass to a Led Zepplin-like version of the classic Son House tune “John the Revelator” then into punk, straight garage rock and then into their Russian death ballad “Lady Vodka”. Sideshow Tramps have attracted an entourage of misfits and sexy young dancers almost as entertaining as the band itself. When the Sideshow Tramps hit the stage one gets the feeling the circus has come to town.
Many of the bands instruments are handmade by band member Geoffery Muller (vocals, banjo, guitar) including a trashcan bass, cigar box guitar, saw and others. This musical assortment has won Muller the Houston Press Music Awards’ “Best Multi-Instrumentalist in Houston” year after year. To date, they (individually and as a group) have collected multiple awards and accolades. The Sideshow Tramps diversity has allowed them to play festivals as assorted as The Houston International festival, Hays Carll’s Stingaree folk festival, San Antonio Indie Fest and a host of venues including the House of Blues, Continental Club, Helios (where mosh pits and crowd surfing were common), Houston’s Hobby Center, Taco Land, and even nursing homes for a rapt audience of about fifteen elderly folks.
Sideshow Tramps formed gradually. Old friends Scott McNeil (vocals, mandolin, guitar) and Craig Kinsey played bluegrass with Geoffery Muller on the front porch of a house on the University of St. Thomas campus, where Kinsey and Muller are alumni. They put on a stage extravaganza at UST patterned after the old American traveling medicine shows, complete with bearded ladies, strong men, swamis, and pirate songs. Drummer, Shane Lauder, soon joined the group. To the surprise of the band, after an open mic night done on a lark, the group was asked to play every Monday night at Houston’s Helios. Soon the Monday night crowd of five to ten people was transformed into a packed house of bazaar and eclectic fans ranging in age from early teens to senior citizens. This humble beginning created a scene the Houston Press dubbed “the front porch vanguard” which has spawned numerous tours and other bands of similar style.
The bands debut CD “Medicine Show” was recorded and mixed in June of 2006 at the legendary Sugarhill Studios. The album has already gone to the top of local charts, beating out national acts such as the White Stripes in local record sales. Their new album will hit stores and online digital download in the beginning of 2010.
Hey Buddies!!! Shotgun Party is playing our Houston CD RELEASE on Sunday 9/20 at the Mucky Duck with Fat Man and Little Boy and tap dancing 6 pm! Come one come all invite your friends! Hope to see you there you CRAZY boys!
Hi, Thanks for the add...!
We're playin' sun Aug 2nd @ The Continental Club - Houston, with everyones favorite DJ Big E...
So if you aint busy grab some friends n' come on out for trashy nite of Rockabilly n' dancing..
Hi, Thanks for the add...!
We're playin' sun Aug 2nd @ The Continental Club - Houston, with everyones favorite DJ Big E...
So if you aint busy grab some friends n' come on out for trashy nite of Rockabilly n' dancing..
The Sideshow Tramps exist for those who wish that the Sex Pistols, AC/DC and Led Zepplin had formed a band together with Bob Dylan, Tom Waits and a Russian Gypsy camp.
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