Music
Reverend Horton Heat’s Western Tour
By Colin Hickey, 12-19-06
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When I listen to The Reverend Horton Heat I feel like I should be under my car covered in oil fixing something. But since I don't know anything about cars, I feel like I should be in a dingy bar somewhere listening to the 70-ish year old man next to me tell stories about all the hot chicks he used to pick up in the '50s.
The Reverend Horton Heat is playing in Boise, Albuquerque and Salt Lake City pretty soon and here are a couple reasons why I think you shouldn't miss the show.
1. You've never seen anything like this on a stage. These guys play 150 shows a year. The Rev could quite possibly be one of the best front men to ever hit the stage. I would place him on the same altar as James Brown, Jagger and Chuck Berry. Jimbo Wallace (bass) plays a stand up bass guitar that is bigger than him but he manhandles it like it was a toy.
2. The Rev actually sponsors a NASCAR Craftsmen Truck Series racing team. Tell me that is not one of the coolest things you've ever heard. What other rocker out there could put that on their resume?
3. In the bands' almost 20 years being together they have been on some of the best record labels known to man. They were on Sub Pop right when the whole Seattle thing started to be cool. They put out three records on Interscope. If that weren't enough they put their last two records out on Yep Roc Records which in my mind is one of the best labels out there at the moment.
4. If you are not convinced so far, here are a couple other little tidbits about The Rev.: His music has been featured on Tony Hawk's video game, in an Ace Ventura movie and he made a guest appearance on the Drew Carey Show.
So after all of this you've decided that you are going to be too “busy” to go to the show. Well I understand people have things that need to be done. Here's what you should do if you are one of these people: Go to your local record store and pick up a Reverend Horton Heat record. Put the record on your stereo and turn it up loud. Go to your garage and grab a wrench get under your car and tinker around for a bit. Trust me --- you're going to feel right at home.
The Reverend Horton Heat plays The Launchpad in Albuquerque on Dec. 29, The Big Easy in Boise on Jan 11 and The Great Saltair on Jan 12th in Salt Lake City. Junior Brown will be opening up the Salt Lake show so that's another reason to go.
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Comments
The first time I went to the show, it was at the newly-opened Rose Room, upstairs in downtown Boise. (His first and LAST appearance there. If you're not familiar with the Rose Room, it's in an historic old building, and during the RevHo's show, the floor was literally moving up and down a good 3 or 4 inches as the frenzied revivalists jumped up and down. This is a floor that was not designed to move AT ALL. I thought for sure everybody would end up in the basement. Wondered how Paul Harvey would describe it, in his lead-off story the next morning.) I've gone twice since, at the Big Easy. Never disappointed.
Indeed, Junior Brown (the Jimi Hendrix of honky-tonk music) would be an added attraction.
My Advice? GO!! Take earplugs. And if you're in the front 2 or 3 rows, or the "mosh pit," a football helmet might be good to have along.
Keep up the good work! How'd you like the Opa-ism book and $50 bucks for Christmas???