The Weepers

Thursday , July 01, 1999
12:00 am
Location: Elderly Instruments
in-store performance (free)

Lansing’s own twang-rockers, The Weepers, have released their long-awaited debut CD and will play a free, in-store CD release performance at Elderly Instruments (1100 N. Washington, Lansing) at 6:00 p.m. Thursday, July 1. The Weepers combine original material with shades of classic country & Western, bluegrass, old-time, honky-tonk, western swing, Irish, surf-rock, Cajun and rockabilly to create a sound that’s all their own. The Weepers were formed by Lansing rock stalwart Drew Howard (formerly of Bad Oskar & the Dumpster Cowboys.) At a 1997 holiday party Howard and Colorado transplants Mike Cutler and Tahmineh Gueramy (of Pub Domaighn and the O’Malleys) found a common interest in classic country and bluegrass, and played till the wee hours of the morning. When Howard’s Dumpster Cowboys called it quits a few months later, the trio got together to continue the jam. With Howard’s steel guitar and Gueramy’s lonesome fiddle, the tunes gravitated towards sad country songs in ¾ time, or "weepers." The name was chosen without debate. At the recommendation of "Progressive Torch & Twang" hosts Doug Neal and Jamie DePolo, string bassist Johnny Carlton was added to the fold. After their first public appearance (at Lansing’s historic Dagwood’s Tavern & Grill) it was decided that a drummer was all that was lacking. As fate would have it, another twangy rock band, the Clutters, were breaking up. Drummer Pat Bills, was snagged from the ashes and the Weepers were complete. Howard broke into his trunk full of original songs, and soon covers were more an exception than a rule. After such high-profile local gigs as Octoberfest and the East Lansing Art Festival, the debut CD, "BitterAngerConstantFear" was unveiled. Consisting of eight Howard originals, one Gueramy song (the country-weeper "Where the Hell") and one traditional fiddle tune, the CD reflects the full spectrum of the Weepers influences. East Lansing folk-favorite Wanda Degan contributes an autoharp track on Howard’s Celtic-flavored "Trouble." Besides the Elderly appearance, the Weepers will play: Island Park in Eaton Rapids Saturday, July 3rd at 3:00 p.m.; Art in the Park at Ferris Park in Lansing - Sun., July 11th at 4:00p.m.; and Bell’s Brewery in Kalamazoo Saturday, July 24th at 9:00. The Weepers are: Drew Howard - vocals, guitar, pedal-steel guitar, mandolin, songwriting Tahmineh Gueramy - fiddle, vocals , songwriting Mike Cutler - mandolin, guitar, octave mandolin, vocals, song-collecting Johnny Carleton - string bass Pat Bills - drums

Check out recordings we carry featuring The Weepers