McGuckin Entertainment PR - Music - South Austin Jug Band

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Feb. 7, 2008

SOUTH AUSTIN JUG BAND TO ISSUE STRANGE INVITATION

New Album Due April 1: Jazzy Rock on Strings, Sticks, Keys

Austin, TX — South Austin Jug Band, the award-winning string band that delivers a seamless hybrid of Americana and rock, will release its third album, the self-produced STRANGE INVITATION, on April 1 and has begun an extensive tour that continues into summer.

From New York City to Los Angeles, Denton to Little Rock and Santa Fe to Yosemite, Calif., longtime fans and new ones on the tour — which includes a hitch in the band’s home base of Austin, performances at the Strawberry Music Festival in May and Wakarusa Music Festival in June, and visits with radio DJs along the way — can look forward to CD release shows featuring album cuts like “Come to Me” “Fall So Fast” and “Jack-Ass,” the band’s homage to alt-rock’s Beck, his post-modern pop arrangements, and the inspiration and influence he’s supplied (and it’s the song whose lyrics sparked the Jug Band’s CD title).

South Austin Jug Band — James Hyland (vocals and guitar), Dennis Ludiker (mandolin and fiddle) and Brian Beken (fiddle, guitar and drums), joined on the CD by Noah Jeffries (upright bass, acoustic guitar), Rob Hooper (drums, cajón, percussion) and Bruce James (piano) — has won three Austin Chronicle Music Awards for Best Bluegrass Band, but its sound has expanded well beyond the single genre’s boundaries. And no, there’s no jug.

With incredibly tight and balanced instrumentals, strong and sensitive vocals, and lyrics with depth, each of the 11 tracks on STRANGE INVITATION (10 originals) holds a clever surprise but never betrays the band’s Americana roots. Dallas Observer says the band “create[s] a ruckus with fiddles, guitars and mandolins that would do most rock bands proud.” It was recorded at Willie Nelson’s Pedernales Studio in Spicewood; distribution is handled by Thirty Tigers in Nashville.

The record enjoyed a limited pre-release last October as the band toured the Netherlands and Belgium and found more inspiration — like the album’s “Wheatfield with Crows” influenced by the last work of Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh. Most of the original songs were written while band members holed up in New York City’s Chelsea Hotel last summer. Austin Monthly says, “STRANGE INVITATION offers an eclectic mix of musical styles that the band members pull together with ease, giving each track just enough of an Americana twist to call their own.”

In Austin, the band will make several appearances, including March 15 at Jovita’s for an official South By Southwest Conference Showcase and April 4 at Threadgill’s World Headquarters for a CD release show.

Upcoming South Austin Jug Band shows include:
February 9, Momo’s, Austin
February 15, Dan’s Silver Leaf, Denton
February 16, The Blue Door Café, Oklahoma City
March 1, Casbeers, San Antonio
March 7, Momo’s, Austin
March 8, All Good Café, Dallas
March 15, Jovita’s, Austin (SXSW Showcase)
March 21, Momo’s, Austin
March 26, The Deli, Norman, Okla.
March 27, Snorty Horse Saloon, Springfield, Mo.
March 28, Sticky Fingerz, Little Rock, Ark.
March 29, All Soul Acoustic Coffee House, Tulsa, Okla.
April 4, Threadgill’s World Headquarters, Austin
April 11, Schotzi’s, College Station
April 19, McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, Houston
April 25, Larry Joe Taylor’s Texas Music Festival, Stephenville, Texas
May 1, Shady Grove, Austin (Unplugged at the Grove)
May 10, Taste of Addison, Addison, Texas
May 15, Santa Fe Brewing Co., Santa Fe, N.M.
May 16, Overlook Park, Los Alamos, N.M.
May 17, Flagstaff Brewing Company, Flagstaff, Ariz.
May 24, Strawberry Music Festival, Camp Mather, Yosemite, Calif.
June 5, Wakarusa Music Festival, Lawrence, Kan.
June 7, Kerrville Folk Festival, Kerrville, Texas
June 9, Fort Worth Botanic Garden, Fort Worth (Concerts in the Garden series)

Interview times are available as well as press kits and review CDs.
For more information, visit http://mcguckinpr.com/mcguckin/south_austin_jug_band/south_austin_jug_band.htm
Also see www.southaustinjugband.com, www.myspace.com/southaustinjugband.

Media Contact: McGuckin Entertainment PR
Heidi Labensart, 512.478.0578 p; heidi@mcguckinpr.com
Jill McGuckin, 512.217.9404 p; jill@mcguckinpr.com

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Artist Information
Bio
Fact Sheet

Press Release:
Apr. 17, 2008
Mar. 5, 2008
Feb. 7, 2008

Press Coverage:
Paste Magazine
Apr. 10, 2008
Austin American-Statemen
Apr. 1, 2008
American Roots.com
Apr. 1, 2008
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Mar. 28, 2008
Austin Music + Entertainment
March, 2008
Austin Chronicle
Mar. 14, 2008
John Shelton Ivany Top 21
Mar. 10, 2008
San Antonio Express-News
Feb. 27, 2008
Austin Monthly
February 2008

Listen:
"Come to Me"
"Falls So Fast "
"Jack-Ass"
"Po Boy in the Glove Box"

Video:
"Reprise" Music Video
News 8’s Rooftop
Variety Interview