Michael Wright and The Coconut Cowboys, a diverse and rapidly growing rock band from Montgomery, Ala., will entertain Starkville this Thursday night. Performing at Remmington’s Hunt Club, the band will begin at 9:30 and will continue playing until 1 a.m.
The Cowboys, who started playing together several years ago, have become very wellknown and widely acclaimed in the Southeastern college circuit. Although they write their own music and hope to release an original CD at the beginning of next year, much of The Cowboys’ success has come from their upbeat renditions of the songs they cover at their concerts.
Their song list includes many hits from artists such as Jimmy Buffett, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Tom Petty and The Beastie Boys, plus their originally written music.
“We have a lot of the regular stuff that everyone loves planned, but we’re also going to introduce a few new things that Starkville hasn’t seen yet,” Wright said.
Last fall, The Cowboys released an EP, which was mixed by Jeff Tomei (Matchbox Twenty, Smashing Pumpkins, Jerry Cantrell) and mastered by Rodney Mills (Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, REM). This four-track CD of original music has sold over 3,000 copies and is an appropriate representative of the group’s musical talent.
“Our sound is basically a strong rock current with a Southern feel, but it’s a new style,” Wright said.
With rock, hip-hop and even a little country thrown into the mixture, The Cowboys need nothing more to individualize their music, but they don’t stop there. Their primarily traditional instrumentation (bass, Clay Lord; drums, Steve Stewart; guitar, Wright) has the added flair of a rock-inspired violin (Zebulon Bowles).
“It’s kind of different, and we’re going to try to highlight the violin a lot more on the upcoming album,” Wright said.
The Coconut Cowboys have brought a lot more to the musical stage than their sound. The sincere passion they express for their music is a nice break from many of the glory-seeking bands of today.
“Being mega-famous is not the goal for us,” Wright said. “We just want to be creative and express ourselves and play some music for people who are having a good time, and if we sell a couple CDs while we’re doing it, then that’s cool.”
After most of their performances, however, The Coconut Cowboys usually end up selling more than just “a couple CDs.” Their lively, spirited audiences almost always end up wanting more.
To order a CD from Michael Wright and The Coconut Cowboys, visit www.coconutcowboys.com, where a selection of merchandise can be found, including T-shirts, CDs, stickers and “The Coconut Cowboys Official Lei.