The Apache Relay should not be construed as a baton hand-off in a competition between American Indians in Arizona or New Mexico. Rather, it’s the name of a band formed by several men in Nashville, Tenn.
“The name comes from a pretty obscure reference in Heavy Weights, a ’90s Ben Stiller movie,” says Michael Ford, Jr. who sings and plays bass in The Apache Relay. “I was in college at Belmont University, looking for some musicians to help me perform my own songs, and I heard about a band started by Mike Harris, a guitarist who sings.So I got with him and his two band members, Brett Moore on keyboards, mandolin and guitar and a fiddle player, Kellen Wenrich, and we went from there.”
Later, Ben Ford, brother of Michael, joined the band to play rhythm guitar and sing backing vocals.
Work began immediately, and in 2009, the band released a debut album, 1988 - so named by Michael Ford for the year of his birth.
“It was about growing up and all the stuff I had gone through,” Ford says, sheepishly.
Doug Williams, who had become noted for his work with The Avett Brothers, produced 1988, and Paste magazine named the album one of “The Eight Most Auspicious Musical Debuts of 2009.”
Two years later, the band released its second album, American Nomad, produced by Neilson Hubbard, himself a singer-songwriter from Mississippi who has produced Garrison Starr, Matthew Ryan and David Knopfler.
“We’re working on our third album, recording it in Los Angeles this year, when we’re not on the road,” Ford says.
The Apache Relay’s influences include The Beatles, Bad Brains, Arcade Fire and the band - Mumford & Sons - for whom the Relay has opened 10 shows. The group has also opened shows for Dawes and Young the Giant.
“I was a big fan of Nebraska-era Bruce Springsteen,” Ford adds. “My brother and I are from New Orleans, originally, so we’ve been fans ofa lot of different music. Brett and Mike are from New Orleans, and Kellen is from Philadelphia. We’re all big fans of Motown and soul music.
“We mostly do original music in our shows, but we might do a couple of covers to keep it fresh for ourselves. One of my favorites is an amazing song by William Bell, ‘I Forgot to Be Your Lover.’”
Festivals have been good to The Apache Relay, from Bonnaroo in 2011 to four Gentlemen of the Road festivals and Ford’s favorite so far, the Newport Folk Festival in 2012, at an oceanside state park in Rhode Island. This year the band has already lined up a new one, the Firefly Festival, in Dover, Del., with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers headlining, plus the Summer Camp Music Festival in Chillicothe, Ill.
“We decided not to go to South by Southwest this year,” Ford says. “We’ve been a couple of times and decided to sit it out until next year, when our new album will hopefully be ready.”
The Apache Relay
Opening act: Adam Fau
cett & the Tall Grass
9:30 p.m. Friday, Stickyz,
107 River Market Ave.,
Little Rock
Admission: $10
(501) 372-7707
stickyz.com
Weekend, Pages 33 on 03/21/2013