Psssst! Looking for a good time?
Or maybe the new Good Time Ramblers CD?
Well, lucky you. The Little Rock-based outlaw country five-piece is planning to celebrate the debut of its third CD, the strong and wonderfully titled Bigelow Strange, Friday night at Stickyz in the River Market.
“I love the way we evolve with each record,” says drummer Brooks Browning. “Each record is different from the [previous] one. Of course, I don’t think we’re gonna make a reggae record.” Along with Bigelow Strange, the group’s catalog includes 2007’s Sinners Welcome and 2009’s Nashville Cowboy.
Browning, whose Rambler mates include bassist/backing vocalist Richard Dwiggins, multi-instrumentalist Alex Piazza, singer/guitarist John Lefler and keyboardist Jeff Coleman, reckons the new record leans a bit more toward the Americana side of country, though the band still maintains an edgy outlaw quality.
And look no further than the new album’s first track, the driving “Illegal Things,” for evidence of that, as chief lyricist Lefler sings of wanderlust, the lure of chemicals and a torn up heart that sounds like equal parts Drive-By Truckers and early Steve Earle and is representative of the rootsy, six pack-after-work-fueled country that is the Ramblers’ forte.
It’s one of two songs (the other is “Burning Fields”) on the album recorded by Jason Tedford at his Wolfman Studios. The rest were recorded by the Ramblers at their practice space. It was a process,Browning says, that allowed the band to work at its own pace without the pressure and expense of a proper studio.
“It was nice to be able to live with these songs on our own. In a traditional studio setup, you’re always watching the clock. We wanted to make it more like [the Rolling Stones’] Exile on Main Street, and just bring in our own equipment and record.”
The Ramblers have been together since 2005. Lefler and high-school pal Piazza began playing together and soon Dwiggins was sitting in with them and brought Browning along. Coleman joined the band in 2009 and handled production on the self-released Bigelow Strange, with Tedford mastering and teaming with Coleman on the album’s engineering.
“Burning Fields,” with its wistful mood, haunting steel guitar and gentle drums, is a favorite of Browning’s off the new album.
“Not a lot of bands in this genre can be that gentle with a song,” he says, “and not a lot of drummers like to play with brushes, but I think we have a pretty good ability to tone it down and let the song shine.”
The Ramblers, who have a few more shows lined up in the coming weeks and months, are hitting their stride, Browning says.
“We really love playing music with each other. I think that you learn to appreciate each other more when you’re in your 30s.”
Good Time Ramblers CD Release Party
Opening act: Amy Garland
Friday, 9 p.m., Stickyz Rock ’n’ Roll Chicken Shack, 107 River Market Ave., Little Rock
Admission: $8
(501) 372-7707
stickyz.com
Weekend, Pages 36 on 05/16/2013