New Orleans-based Cowboy Mouth will take the stage Sept. 29 at the State Theatre, the first major act to perform in the newly renovated venue, bringing back to life one of Starkville’s most famous downtown establishments.Coming to town toward the end of the tour behind its latest album Voodoo Shoppe, Cowboy Mouth will bring its rowdy, road-wise brand of rock to Starkville.
“Hell yeah,” said lead singer Fred Leblanc in a phone interview from Washington, D.C. Monday. “We’re going to have a ball playing at the State Theatre and we’re looking forward to it. Southeastern Conference crowds know how to have a good time. We love the Southern crowds because that’s where we as a band grew up.”
Bringing the band’s live show to Starkville was an immediate draw for State Theatre manager Emilio Garma.
“We wanted a band with a great show and Cowboy Mouth seemed like a good way to really open up the State Theatre,” Garma said.
“We’re looking at a local or regional act to open for Cowboy Mouth, but this is the first of many bands that will be coming through our venue.”
The band is known for its dynamic stage show albeit with a somewhat unorthodox lineup. Lead vocalist Fred Leblanc is also the band’s drummer. Despite the somewhat unusual band configuration, Cowboy Mouth is a true “road dog” band playing to more than eight million people since the band’s inception.
Along with the rigors of being a hard touring band, the New Orleans natives have also had to deal with the total devastation of their hometown.
“New Orleans is tough – it’s coming back slowly but surely,” LeBlanc said. Although mostly written before Hurricane Katrina, Voodoo Shoppe still pays tribute to the storm-ravaged town. Songs like “The Avenue” and “Home” are the band’s way of remembering all that was lost in the storm.
Along with musical tributes to the victims and cities affected by Hurricane Katrina, the band also has an ongoing hurricane relief fund they support.
The band’s current tour behind Voodoo Shoppe has carried them all over the country, among other places worldwide.
This summer the band also filmed a live concert for an upcoming DVD at the famous Roxy club in Los Angeles.
“One thing that was really great about this tour was playing “The Regis and Kelly Show.” We have a song called Kelly Rippa that we broke out at the show. It goes ‘Kelly Rippa, Kelly Rippa, a mom with a body like a strippa.’ Everybody got a kick out of it and it’s gonna go on our next recording,” LeBlanc said.
“We’ll play some new stuff in Starkville for fun. It’s always great having people enjoy the new stuff like “Joe Strummer” and “This Much Fun,” LeBlanc said.
In addition to the new offerings, the band will of course play its mainstream hits like “How Do You Tell Someone” and “Jenny Says.”
Alongside the band, organizers feel the State Theatre will provide a nice backdrop for the band’s performance.
“The State Theatre is a historical building and we’re preserving that aspect and we think that people will appreciate it,” Garma said. “The history and character of the building will add another nuance to a night out.”
“We hope to throughout our schedule to have a little something for everyone.”
The State Theatre will also feature another critically-acclaimed act in October, singer-songwriter Robert Earl Keen.
The Houston native Keen will take the State Theatre stage Oct. 23. Keen is renowned for penning such songs as “The Road Goes On Forever (and the Party Never Ends),” “Corpus Christi Bay” and “The Front Porch Song.