Ultra-versatile rock band Archer Avenue is embarking on its Holiday Headlights Tour of the Southwest this week, with three shows planned between Las Cruces and El Paso. The Texas-based band went on a similar tour this time last year right before it released its debut full-length album, "We Watched the Headlights, We Watched the Stars." Since that time, Archer Avenue has made noise on the CMJ charts, worked on a national distribution deal and gained worldwide attention.
The band played its first show in Las Cruces last year, and drummer Dave Volk said the band members are excited to be playing two shows here this time around. "New Mexico has been our favorite state so far ` besides Texas," he said in a phone interview last week. "(New Mexico) is full of people who love original music.
" Volk said the band's sound has been described as rootsy powerpop rock, and songs on their debut album run the gamut from garage rock "Cops Don't Care" to honkytonk "Breakdown on N. St. Mary's.
" The San Antonio Current compared Archer Avenue's sound to a cross between the Gin Blossoms and The Old 97's. "You can tell we listen to other bands, no doubt, but we try to do our own thing," Volk said. "We aren't trying to invent a new genre,
" College radio station DJs obviously like the music the band is making as well, as Archer Avenue recently charted among the Top 15 independent bands added to college radio station playlists, according to CMJ, which tracks such statistics. Volk said he's also heard that the band's tunes get airplay in The Netherlands, Germany and England. The band first made waves in 2004 with its initial EP, "Left of the Dial.
" That album caught the attention of Grammy award-winning producer Pete Anderson (Dwight Yoakam, kd Lang), as well as making the top 100 new downloads on iTunes Germany and the United Kingdom in 2005. Anderson produced the band's follow-up "Headlights," (released on indie label That Phantom Sound) which has garnered national acclaim. Jessie Shires from Hyperactive Music Magazine called the album "a guilty pleasure from a promising young band.
" Volk said securing a national distribution deal and signing with a bigger label are the next steps for Archer Avenue, which plays most of its shows in the Austin area even though three of its members (Volk, guitarist Marc Sauceda and bass player Stephan De La Cruz) live in San Antonio and lead singer Jack Bonner calls Houston home. "We play a lot in Austin, but it's the friggin' live music capitol of the world, so you don't feel bad about the drive," Volk said. In fact, the group is used to covering a lot of ground for shows.
Before May, Volk lived in Phoenix and Sauceda was based out of El Paso. Now, with all the members living within a few hundred miles of each other, the band has ramped up its performance schedule, putting on shows nearly five times a week. "Whether it's a rock club or a roots club or a country place, we've been able to fit in real well," Volk said.
The group even booked a show at the Continental Club, which bills itself as "the premiere club for live music in Austin since 1957." Archer Avenue went on stage at the Continental between a jazz band and a country act and "fit in perfectly," according to Volk. When and where: 9 p.
m. Tuesday at El Patio, 2171 Calle de Parian (21+) When and where: 9 p.m.
Wednesday at Lucky Devils, 1510 Bengal Drive in El Paso When and where: 9 p.m. Dec.
28 at Hurricane Alley, 1490 Missouri Ave (21+) For Pulse (This article first appeared in the Jan. 6, 2006 edition of the El Paso Times) On Archer Avenue's first full-length album, "We Watched the Headlights, We Watched the Stars," the band's sound meshes flawlessly, evoking their alt-country influences, including Ryan Adams and the Refreshments. The band's follow-up to its self-released debut EP, "Left of the Dial," is a slick blend of catchy hooks making for a great album to take along on a road trip through the Texas countryside.
The album's first track, "Cops Don't Care," summarizes the rest of the album's sound, despite the kooky song title, and showcases Bonner's Dave Pirner-like voice, while "House of Cards" is mostly guitar-driven and would probably make an excellent second single. But the song that probably hits closer to the band's country roots is "Breakdown on N. St.
Mary's," a bouncy almost Tex-Mex tune that almost made me wish it was a bit longer than its 2:01 running time. "We Watched the Headlights, We Watched the Stars" was produced by Pete Anderson, who has worked with Dwight Yoakam, the Meat Puppets and k.d.
lang. Adriana M.
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